OTTAWA — The governments of Canada and Ecuador are signing a free trade deal in Ottawa today. Mujtaba Hussain, a spokesperson for International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu, confirmed a signing ceremony is taking place but said there are no public events scheduled. Lucero Gutiérrez, a spokesperson for the Embassy of Ecuador to Canada, said in an email that Ecuador’s minister of production, foreign trade and investment Luis Alberto Jaramillo will be at the signing event. Several Canadian organizations and civil society leaders have pushed back against Canada-Ecuador free trade talks and warn that a deal will threaten the environment and worsen a human rights crisis in the South American country. Negotiations on the trade pact concluded in early 2025 and the proposed deal would see Ecuador effectively remove tariffs from all Canadian imports. The government’s website says bilateral trade between Canada and Ecuador reached almost $2.2 billion in 2025. With files from Dylan Robertson Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press
