29 April 2016 – The Department of Foreign Affairs advises the public that the Ecuadorian Government has opened the international fund: TERREMOTO ECUADOR or EARTHQUAKE EQUADOR, for private individuals, corporations, NGOs and humanitarian organizations interested to provide financial aid for victims of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake which struck coastal Ecuador on 16 April 2016.

Several days after the main earthquake, the death toll from the disaster has reached more than 650 and many communities remain without food, water, power or transport. The tragedy is estimated to have caused between USD2 to USD3 billion in infrastructural and livelihood damage, and is widely expected to heavily derail the country’s long-term economic growth. 

 The Ecuadorian Permanent Mission in Geneva informed other foreign missions in the country that the Ecuadorian Government prefers financial assistance at the moment, although material aid remains welcome. The Ministry of Finance of Ecuador, through Ecuadorian embassies and consulates, circulated the following bank account details where interested donors could deposit their donations directly to the Ecuadorian Government’s TERREMOTO ECUADOR account:

Name of Bank:                  Citibank, N.A.

Swift Code:                       CITIUS33

ABA:                                 021000089

Account Number NY:          36360112

Name of Account:              TERREMOTO ECUADOR / EARTHQUAKE ECUADOR

Zip Code:                          10043

Tel No.:                             001-813-604-7062

Address in Citibank, N.A.:   111 Wall St., New York, NY 10043

The Philippine Embassy in Santiago, with jurisdiction over Ecuador, continues to monitor the welfare of OFWs residing in the affected areas.  As of this writing, reports from the Ecuadorian Government and the Philippine Honorary Consulate in Ecuador indicate that no Filipino national was hurt from the earthquake. END