Rafael Correa

Rafael Correa is an Ecuadorian economist and politician who served as Ecuador’s president from 2007 to 2017. His presidency reshaped the constitution, expanded state spending, and centralized executive power.

2008 Constitution of Ecuador: Ecuador’s constitution adopted by referendum in 2008, which reorganized state institutions and expanded social and participatory rights. It embodied Correa’s project to replace the existing political order through a constituent assembly.
Resource nationalism: State control or public ownership of natural resources to direct their revenues toward national goals. Correa increased state authority over oil revenues to finance his government’s program.
Lenín Moreno: An Ecuadorian politician who served as president from 2017 to 2021 after succeeding Rafael Correa. Moreno reversed several of Correa’s policies after initially campaigning as his political successor.
Odebrecht scandal: A multinational bribery scandal in which Brazilian construction company Odebrecht admitted paying officials across Latin America and elsewhere. The scandal implicated Ecuadorian officials and became part of the legal and political disputes surrounding Correa’s circle.
Citizens’ Revolution: The political movement and governing project associated with Rafael Correa and his Alianza PAIS coalition. It supplied the name and organizing identity for Correa’s political program.
Ecuadorian oil industry: The extraction, transport, and export of petroleum, a major source of Ecuador’s public revenue and exports. Oil income underwrote much of the spending and infrastructure investment during Correa’s presidency.
Guillermo Lasso: An Ecuadorian banker and politician who served as president from 2021 to 2023. His market-oriented politics contrasted with Correa’s state-led economic approach.
Ecuadorian corruption cases: Legal proceedings concerning alleged or proven corruption involving Ecuadorian public officials and public contracts. Correa’s allies and opponents dispute whether cases against his administration reflect accountability or political retaliation.
Ecuadorian economic crisis of 1998–1999: A severe financial and currency crisis that brought bank failures, a sharp recession, and Ecuador’s adoption of the US dollar. Public frustration with the crisis-era political establishment helped create conditions for Correa’s rise.
Ecuadorian public debt: The financial obligations owed by Ecuador’s central government to domestic and foreign creditors. Borrowing became increasingly important to public investment as oil prices fell.

Linked from 2 pages