Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Challenges and Recommendations
Leadership and Governance
When the national park was created in 1959, the Galápagos Islands had the status of
“territory” administrated by the Ecuadorian Navy and were governed from Quito,
Ecuador's Andean capital. In 1973, the archipelago became a province and was
divided into three municipalities. National governance was gradually decentralized
in the 1970s and 1980s, but the central government kept close control of local
administration. Local administration in Galápagos became much more independent
in 1998 through the Special Law of Galápagos. The archipelago's administrative and
political entities (Municipalities, Province Council, National Galápagos Institute)
gained much power through the control of 40% of the annual amount of National
Park's entrance fee (US$100 for every adult foreign tourist). With such incomes,
political and administrative structures have been able to build more transport and
urban infrastructures to support tourism and population booms, and to consolidate
their clientele. Despite this, the Ecuador central government has always kept total
control of education, health, tourism and conservation policies in the archipelago.
Since the Special Law was enacted, though, Ecuador has been through a period of
political instability: there have been 15 directors of the National Park, 10 ministers
of environment and with 7 different presidents of Ecuador. Obviously, this national
political instability has affected the Galápagos institutions.
The Galápagos Regional Plan (2001) described the need to more effectively
coordinate leadership and governance, but little progress has been made in this area.
At present, over 70 local, regional and national institutions play some role in
decision-making on and about the Galápagos, including leaders of national,
regional and local governments, heads of decentralized organizations such as the
Galápagos National Park, high ranking military personal, business owners, workers'
unions and various non-government organisations. There is insufficient coordination
of these different actors and a general lack of transparency in the decision-making
process, which has been characterized by political patronage and lack of data-based
analysis. The President of Ecuador began the process of clarifying administration
of the archipelago in August 2007. In September of 2008, a new national
constitution strengthening institutional governance in the Galápagos was approved.
The new constitution gives greater administrative power to the centralized govern-
ment, changes Galápagos' status from a province to a special district, and develops
a Regional Government Council. Changes in public administration structure are
currently being discussed through a participatory revision of the Special Law.
Recommendations
(a) Improve institutional coordination and clearly define responsibilities and mini-
mize duplication in the new organizational structure. The coordination process
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