Biography
Ivonne Baki was born on 23 February 1951 in Guayaquil to Fred Juez and Anan Abuchacra,both Lebanese immigrants to Ecuador. [3] At 17,Ivonne married Lebanese millionaire Sami A-Baki,took his surname,and moved to his residence in Lebanon. The couple would be present in the country for much of the Lebanese Civil War. [4] In 1982,Ivonne Baki moved to Paris and studied the arts at the Sorbonne. [3] Later,she would study Public administration at Harvard University. [5]
Beginnings in diplomacy
Baki began her political career as Ecuador's consul to Beirut in 1981. From 1992 to 1998,she was an honorary consul in Boston,Massachusetts in the United States of America. [4]
In 1995,Baki and Roger Fisher received a request from the President Sixto Durán Ballén to participate in the peace deliberations of the Cenepa War between Ecuador and Peru. Both accepted and agreed to cooperate,moving to Ecuador and were involved in the process that led to the Brasilia Presidential Act in 1998. [5] In the same year,Jamil Mahuad,the new president of Ecuador,appointed Baki the Ecuadorian Ambassador to the United States of America, [6] the first woman appointed to this office. [5] In this position,Baki played a key role in achieving favorable trade agreements with the United States. [6]
In 2000,Baki founded the Galapagos Conservancy,after an oil spill took place in the Galapagos Islands,with the aid of American tycoon Donald Trump,whom she had met and befriended during a diplomatic trip to the United States. [7] During the 2002 Ecuadorian general election,Baki made a failed attempt for the Presidency of Ecuador as head of META. [8]
Ministry of Industries and Productivity
On 15 January 2003,Baki was appointed Minister of Industries and Productivity [ es ] by President Lucio Gutiérrez,yet again becoming the first woman to occupy that office. [9] While holding this office,Baki also managed to have Miss Universe 2004 hosted in Quito,Ecuador thanks to her friendship to Donald Trump,owner of the company that organized the event. In response to criticism levied at her over the high cost of the event,Baki said that the money was "an investment" and not an expense and that it would provide an "excellent opportunity to promote the country [Ecuador] abroad." [10] Another landmark of Baki's running of the Ministry was her attempt to establish a Free Trade Agreement with the United States,which was widely criticized by indigenous groups,who held demonstrations against Baki's ministry. [6]
Later political activity
During the 2006 legislative election [ es ],Baki was elected to the Andean Parliament to represent the Patriotic Society Party. [11] Once her membership of the Andean Parliament began,the Ecuadorian delegation proposed as a candidate for the Presidency of the Parliament for the 2007–2009 term. [5]
At the beginning of 2010,she was elected head of the team negotiating Yasuní-ITT Initiative by President Rafael Correa with the objective of raising 3,600 million dollars from the international community in exchange for the cessation of exploiting of approximately 846 million barrels of oil underneath Yasuni National Park. [12] The project could not achieve these goals and was dissolved mid-2013. [13]
In February 2020,Baki was confirmed as Ambassador to the United States by President Lenín Moreno. [2] In February 2024 she became Ecuador's ambassador in Paris but that appointment was terminated on 6 November 2024 by President Noboa. [14]
Sixto Alfonso Durán-Ballén Cordovez was an Ecuadorian political figure and architect. He served as Mayor of Quito between 1970 and 1978. In 1951, he co-founded a political party, the Social Christian Party. In 1991, he left the Social Christian Party and formed a new conservative group, the Republican Union Party (PUR), before running for president for the third time in 1992.
Álvaro Fernando Noboa Pontón is an Ecuadorian businessman and politician. He is the father of the incumbent president, Daniel Noboa.
Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who served as President of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017. The leader of the PAIS Alliance political movement from its foundation until 2017, Correa is a democratic socialist and his administration focused on the implementation of left-wing policies. Internationally, he served as president pro tempore of the UNASUR. Since 2017, he has been living in exile in Belgium.
Olga Mercedes Álava Vargas is an Ecuadorian model, social, lifestyle entrepreneur, environmentalist and beauty queen. She became the first delegate from Ecuador to win the Miss Earth pageant.
Guillermo Alberto Santiago Lasso Mendoza is an Ecuadorian businessman, banker and politician who served as the 47th president of Ecuador from 2021 to 2023. He was the country's first conservative president in nearly two decades, marking a shift in the country's electorate.
The President of the National Assembly is the presiding officer of the legislature of Ecuador. In 2009 the National Congress of Ecuador was replaced by the National Assembly. The position of President of the National Assembly has existed since then.
Alicia Cawiya or Cahuiya is the vice-president of the Huaorani Nation of Ecuador and one of the leaders of the movement against oil exploitation in her region. In 2013, she made a speech in Ecuador's parliament to protect the Amazon basin from oil companies.
Ana Lucía Armijos Hidalgo is an Ecuadorian politician and economist. She was the first female Ecuadorian Minister of the Interior.
Annabella Emma Azín Arce is an Ecuadorian politician, doctor of medicine, and wife of Álvaro Noboa. She is president of the Crusade for a New Humanity Foundation, caring for those afflicted by disease for over 20 years.
Carmen Irina Cabezas Rodríguez is an Ecuadorian politician and educator. She was the secretary of the "Toda Una Vida" plan.
Rosana Vinueza Estrada de Tama was an Ecuadorian politician and beauty pageant titleholder. In 1969, she was named Miss Ecuador 1969, and was a participant in Miss Universe 1969. From there, she married and had four children, and went to work in the nonprofit sector. She was the manager of Fundación Natura, an environmental non-profit organization, and also guided Fundación Crecer as that non-profit organization was starting up.
Isabel Noboa Pontón de Loor is an Ecuadorian businessperson, the founder and chief executive officer of the Nobis Consortium, one of the largest business groups in Ecuador. She is considered one of the most prominent women entrepreneurs in Latin America, and is known for philanthropic initiatives.
Eva Irene de los Ángeles García Fabre, is an Ecuadorian businesswoman, diplomat, and politician, currently serving as her country's ambassador to Peru.
Wilma Piedad Andrade Muñoz is an Ecuadorian politician. Since 2017, she has served as a member of the National Assembly, after she was elected as part of the Democratic Left. In 2024 she became Ecuador's ambassador to Spain.
Snap general elections were held in Ecuador on 20 August 2023 to vote for President of Ecuador, members of the National Assembly and two referendums. Elections followed the invocation of muerte cruzada, which dissolved the National Assembly on 17 May 2023. A run-off election was held on 15 October 2023 to elect the President after candidates were unable to reach the threshold needed to win in the first round. Incumbent president Guillermo Lasso was eligible for a second term, but he announced on 18 May that he would not stand for re-election in response to his impeachment.
Daniel Roy Gilchrist Noboa Azín is an Ecuadorian politician and businessman who is currently serving as the 48th president of Ecuador since 2023. Taking office at the age of 35, he is the second-youngest president in the country's history, after Juan José Flores, and the youngest to be elected.
Luisa Magdalena González Alcivar is an Ecuadorian politician and lawyer who ran for President of Ecuador in the 2023 general election. She was elected to the National Assembly in the 2021 legislative elections representing the Province of Manabi.
A referendum on banning oil exploitation in the Yasuní National Park was held in Ecuador on 20 August 2023 alongside general elections. If the proposal was accepted, a progressive withdrawal of all activities related to oil extraction would occur within one year from the announcement of the official results, and the state would not be able to take action intending to initiate new contracts to continue oil exploration in the block. The referendum was a popular initiative demanded by indigenous communities for more than ten years before being finally validated by the Constitutional Court in May 2023.
Ángela Lavinia Valbonesi Acosta is an Ecuadorian businesswoman, nutritionist, and social media influencer who is the current first lady of Ecuador since 2023 as the wife of President Daniel Noboa.
Sariha Belén Moya Angulo is an Ecuadorian economist and politician who has been the acting Vice President of Ecuador since 2024. She was selected by President Daniel Noboa, replacing suspended Vice President Verónica Abad Rojas. She previously served as National Secretary of Planning under the Noboa administration from 2023 to 2024.
