Life expectancy in Ecuador from 1870 to 2020

In 1870, the average person born in Ecuador could expect to live to just under the age of 33. Outside of a temporary drop in the late 1910s, the result of the 1918 Spanish Flu epidemic, life expectancy in Ecuador would see only modest growth for much of the first half of the 20^th century, reaching just over 35 years in 1940. However, life expectancy would begin to rise sharply in the 1940s, as reforms under President Galo Plaza Lasso would bring a period of stability and economic growth to the country, greatly improving standards of living and seeing the infant mortality rate drop dramatically. Between 1940 and 1950 alone, life expectancy would jump by more than twelve years, to almost 48 years.

Following the end of Galo Plaza’s term in 1952, Ecuador would endure a period of instability and civil unrest, causing life expectancy to temporarily stagnate for several years. However, life expectancy would begin to grow rapidly again starting in the 1960s as modernization would see a continuation of the improvements made in the 1940s. This growth would continue steadily into the 21^st century, and in 2020, life expectancy from birth is almost 77 years.