FSCI Indicators Breakdown
The Food Systems Countdown Initiative (FSCI) is a collaborative interdisciplinary effort to monitor global food systems. The FSCI developed a framework that includes five themes: (1) diets, nutrition, and health; (2) environment, natural resources, and production; (3) livelihoods, poverty, and equity; (4) governance; and (5) resilience and identified 50 indicators across these themes. This page presents national level data for these 50 indicators for Ecuador.
Ecuador income group: Upper Middle Income
Comparison
Ecuador
South America
World
Diets, Nutrition, and Health
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Ecuador
3
South America
3.4
World
3.4
Cost of a healthy diet per capita
3 PPP dollar/capita/day
Per-person cost of the least expensive locally available foods to meet daily needs, based on food-based dietary guidelines
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
20
South America
21
World
42
Percent of the population who cannot afford a healthy diet
20%
Share of the population whose food budget is less than the cost of a healthy diet
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
164.3
South America
304.5
World
261.4
Availability of fruits
164.3 g/capita/day
Amount of fruits—an underconsumed yet highly nutritious food group—available in a country’s food supply per capita per day
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
63
South America
220.8
World
300.8
Availability of vegetables
63 g/capita/day
Amount of vegetables—an underconsumed yet highly nutritious food group—available in a country’s food supply per capita per day
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
53
South America
65
World
68
Percent of the population using safely managed drinking water services
53%
Share of the population that gets drinking water from an improved source, providing the clean water essential for food security (SDG 6.1.1)
2022
Ecuador
326.3
South America
74.3
World
155.1
Retail value (total sales) of ultra-processed foods per capita
326.3 current PPP dollar/capita/year
Annual perperson sales of ultra-processed foods, which are known to be associated with poor health outcomes
2021
Ecuador
84
South America
79
World
66
MDD-W: Minimum dietary diversity for women
84%
Share of women who consumed at least the minimum recommended food groups the previous day, which makes it more likely they consume adequate micronutrients
2021
Ecuador
44
South America
37
World
39
All-5: Consumption of all five food groups
44%
Share of the adult population consuming all five food groups typically recommended for daily consumption
2021
Ecuador
4.1
South America
3.9
World
3.8
NCD-Protect
4.1
Average score for adults on an indicator of dietary practices protective against noncommunicable diseases, like eating enough fiber, on a scale from 0 to 9
2021
Ecuador
2.1
South America
2.7
World
2.1
NCD-Risk
2.1
Average score for adults on an indicator of dietary practices known to raise the risk of noncommunicable diseases, like eating too much sugar, on a scale from 0 to 9
2021
Ecuador
6
South America
7
World
11
Adults: Zero fruit or vegetable consumption
6%
Share of adults who did not consume any fruits or vegetables the previous day
2021
Ecuador
29
South America
33
World
19
Adults: Soft drink consumption
29%
Share of adults who consumed a sugar-sweetened soft drink, which are generally known to be unhealthy, during the previous day
2021
Ecuador
14
South America
6
World
11
POU: Prevalence of undernourishment
14%
Share of the population that goes hungry—that is, lacks enough calories for a healthy, active life (SDG 2.1.1)
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
37
South America
32
World
31
Percent of the population experiencing moderate or severe food insecurity
37%
Per-person cost of the least expensive locally available foods to meet daily needs, based on food-based dietary guidelines
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
53
South America
70
World
32
MDD (IYCF): Minimum dietary diversity for infants and young children
53%
Share of young children who consumed at least the minimum recommended food groups the previous day, which makes it more likely they consume adequate micronutrients
2019
Source: UNICEF
Ecuador
27
South America
14
World
39
Children (6-23 months): Zero fruit or vegetable consumption
27% population 6-23 months
Share of young children who did not consume any fruits or vegetables the previous day
2019
Source: UNICEF
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Environment, natural resources, and production
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Ecuador
4.1
South America
4.8
World
4.2
Cereals yield
4.1 tonnes/ha
Yield, or production per unit area (tonnes per hectare)—an indicator of how efficient production is
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
20.6
South America
16.5
World
13.8
Fruit yield
20.6 tonnes/ha
Yield, or production per unit area (tonnes per hectare)—an indicator of how efficient production is
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
7.3
South America
19.6
World
20.1
Vegetable yield
7.3 tonnes/ha
Yield, or production per unit area (tonnes per hectare)—an indicator of how efficient production is
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
2,291.2
South America
2,465
World
2,262.9
Cow's milk yield
2,291.2 100 g/animal
Yield, or production per animal (100 g per animal)—an indicator of how efficient production is
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
2,167
South America
2,385
World
2,210.1
Beef yield
2,167 100 g/animal
Yield, or production per animal (100 g per animal)—an indicator of how efficient production is
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
35.1
South America
29.2
World
21.2
Fishery health index progress score
35.1
An indicator summarizing the availability and sustainability of fish, which are at risk of overfishing or environmental degradation
2021
Source: Minderoo Foundation
Ecuador
50,389.6
South America
205,947.7
World
83,692.6
Agri-food systems greenhouse gas emissions
50,389.6 kT CO2eq
Ecuador
0.2
South America
0.2
World
0.2
Greenhouse gas emissions intensity for cereals (excluding rice)
0.2 kg CO2eq/kg product
Greenhouse gas emissions (kg CO2 equivalents) per kilogram produced of cereals (excluding rice)
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
1.6
South America
0.9
World
1.1
Greenhouse gas emissions intensity for rice
1.6 kg CO2eq/kg product
Ecuador
1.1
South America
1
World
1
Greenhouse gas emissions intensity for cow's milk
1.1 kg CO2eq/kg product
Greenhouse gas emissions (kg CO2 equivalents) per kilogram produced of cow's milk
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
28.1
South America
43.5
World
28.3
Greenhouse gas emissions intensity for beef
28.1 kg CO2eq/kg product
Ecuador
0
South America
1
World
0
Cropland area change
0% change
Average percentage change in cropland over the previous five years; expanding cropland is a major driver of biodiversity and ecosystem service loss and greenhouse gas emissions
2021
Source: FSCI
Ecuador
88
South America
64
World
43
Functional integrity: Agricultural land with minimum level of natural habitat
88% agricultural land
Percentage of agricultural land area with enough semi-natural or natural habitat, relative to the amount of cropland or rangeland, to maintain biodiversity and functioning ecosystems
2015
Source: DeClerck et al. 2021
Ecuador
2
South America
1
World
17
Agriculture water withdrawal as percent of total renewable water resources
2%
Water withdrawn for irrigation each year, as a percentage of the total renewable water resources available
2020
Source: AQUASTAT
Ecuador
7.8
South America
7.9
World
2.3
Pesticide use per area of cropland
7.8 kg/ha
The use of pesticides per area of cropland (kg active ingredient per hectare); pesticide use can cause pollution and harm health
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Livelihoods, Poverty, and Equity
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Ecuador
9
South America
6
World
4
Share of agriculture in GDP
9% GDP
Percentage of a country’s GDP derived from agriculture, a measure of the level of economic development of the country
2022
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
2
South America
6
World
4
Unemployment rate (Rural)
2% working age population
Ecuador
21
South America
10
World
6
Underemployment rate (Rural)
21% working age population
Percentage of working-age people in rural areas who are underemployed (i.e., worked fewer hours than expected)
2022
Source: ILO
Ecuador
46
South America
62
World
58
Social protection coverage
46% population
Percentage of people who live in households that benefit from social protection programs, like cash transfers and health insurance
2020
Source: World Bank
Ecuador
14
South America
34
World
23
Social protection adequacy
14% welfare of beneficiary households
An indicator showing the extent to which social protection is sufficient to meet household needs
2020
Source: World Bank
Ecuador
4
South America
5
World
8
Percent of children 5-17 years engaged in child labor
4% children 5-17
Percentage of children ages 5–17 who are engaged in child labor, the majority of which is known to be in the food system and specifically in agriculture
2021
Source: UNICEF
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Governance
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Ecuador
0.7
South America
0.7
World
0.6
Civil society participation index
0.7
An indicator capturing the level of participation in civil society organizations
2022
Source: Varieties of Democracy
Ecuador
83
South America
38
World
8
Percent of the urban population living in cities signed onto the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact
83%
Percentage of the urban population that lives in cities signed on to the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, suggesting prioritization of food issues in urban planning
2023
South America
NaN
World
NaN
Degree of legal recognition of the right to food
No Data
South America
NaN
World
NaN
Presence of a national food system transformation pathway
No Data
Ecuador
-0.3
South America
-0.5
World
0
Government effectiveness index
-0.3
An index capturing the perception of how effective the government is in making and enforcing policies and providing services
2022
Source: World Governance Indicators
Ecuador
80
South America
89.2
World
69.5
Food safety capacity
80
Whether functioning mechanisms exist to detect and respond to foodborne disease issues, measured as the percentage of a set of criteria met
2020
Source: WHO Global Health Observatory
South America
NaN
World
NaN
Presence of national health-related food environment policies
No Data
Whether the country has any health-related food taxes, which are used to discourage consumption of unhealthy foods
Ecuador
1
South America
1.1
World
0.2
V-Dem accountability index
1
An index capturing the extent to which the government is seen as being accountable for its actions
2022
Source: Varieties of Democracy
Ecuador
46
South America
61.9
World
43
Open budget index score
46
A score based on how easily the public can access information about how the government raises and spends money
2021
Source: International Budget Partnership
South America
NaN
World
NaN
Guarantees for public access to information
No Data
Whether the country has and implements guarantees for access to information (SDG 16.10.2)
Source: Sustainable Development Goals
Less Desirable
More Desirable
Resilience
Less Desirable
More Desirable
South America
NaN
World
NaN
Ratio of total damages from all disasters to GDP
No Data
Cost of all damage from natural disasters, as a percentage of GDP
Source: EM-DAT
Ecuador
0.7
South America
0.6
World
0.7
Dietary sourcing flexibility index
0.7
An index capturing the diversity of pathways through which food reaches consumers, indicating how difficult it is to disrupt the food supply
2019
Source:
FAO
Ecuador
97.2
South America
118.9
World
110.1
Mobile cellular subscriptions
97.2 Number per 100 people
Number of mobile phone subscriptions as a percentage of the population, indicating the level of infrastructure and access to information to respond to shocks
2022
Ecuador
0.2
South America
0.2
World
0.5
Social capital index
0.2
An index for the social capital in the country—how much people feel they can trust and can rely on their government and one another
2021
Source: Legatum InstituteFSCI
Ecuador
43
South America
30
World
25
Proportion of agricultural land with minimum level of species diversity (crop and pasture)
43% agricultural land
Percentage of agricultural land (crop and pasture) containing a sufficient diversity of species, which helps cope with shocks and changes
2020
Source:
Jones et al. 2021
Ecuador
29,149
South America
114,908.5
World
163,165.1
Number of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture secured in either medium- or long-term conservation facilities
29,149
Number of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture secured in medium- or long-term conservation facilities (SDG 2.5.1)
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
South America
0.7
World
3.8
Number of animal genetic resources for food and agriculture secured in either medium- or long-term conservation facilities
No Data
Number of animal genetic resources for food and agriculture secured in medium- or long-term conservation facilities (SDG 2.5.1)
Source: FAOSTAT
Ecuador
0.3
South America
0.4
World
0.4
Prevalence of severe coping strategies
0.3
Percentage of high-risk populations who need to rely on extreme strategies to cope with food insecurity
2022
Source:
WFP
Ecuador
1
South America
0.7
World
0.7
Food price volatility
1
Ecuador
20
South America
39.8
World
32.2
Food supply variability per capita
20 kcal/capita/day
How much the food supply (in calories per person per day) varies over time, indicating how well the food system can respond to shocks
2021
Source: FAOSTAT
Less Desirable
More Desirable