The Ecuadorian Navy inaugurated its Credibility and Trust Center to strengthen the fight against corruption and enhance transparency. The initiative was developed with U.S. support, which included equipment donations, and training for a special unit.
The facility was inaugurated July 7 by Admiral Pablo Caicedo Salvador, commander of the Ecuadorian Navy, and U.S. Consul General in Ecuador Erik Martini, who highlighted the U.S. commitment to fighting narcotrafficking and organized crime for a safer hemisphere.
Bilateral cooperation
The Center’s primary objective is to serve as a preventative counterintelligence measure to combat corruption and organized crime within the Armed Forces. It aims to vet military and law enforcement personnel to ensure they have not been compromised by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs). The Center will use polygraph tests and other technologies to obtain this evidence.
“The purpose of this center is to compile a list of individuals who are most at risk of corruption or infiltration, to ensure that they have not been co-opted by organized crime,” Ecuadorian security analyst Jean Paul Pinto told Diálogo. “All of this means that those who operate in border or coastal areas, particularly in the most violent and at-risk areas, must undergo recurring trustworthiness tests.”
While the facility was inaugurated by the Navy, its services are expected to benefit the entire Ecuadorian Armed Forces and other key law enforcement agencies. This includes military units operating in key areas like the Amazonian border regions and along the country’s coast, as well as those providing security to the prison system, which has seen infiltration by gangs. The Center’s ability to “purge” the ranks of compromised personnel will strengthen institutional integrity and improve the effectiveness of their operations against TCOs.
“This will allow us to evaluate the reliability of our members and strengthen institutional integrity,” the Ecuadorian Navy said. “Our evaluators will be the first line of defense against internal corruption and the infiltration of interests unrelated to our institutional mission.”
U.S. support for the Center is a direct outcome of a $25 million bilateral security cooperation agreement signed with Ecuador in September 2024. This assistance, provided by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), is a core component of its mission to support capacity building of partner nation law enforcement agencies. Beyond the initial equipment donation and training, the U.S. assistance is expected to include technical expertise, mentorship, and operational funding to ensure the Center’s long-term viability. The agreement’s overall objective is to strengthen democratic institutions to combat TCOs, promote citizen security, ensure law enforcement, and strengthen the rule of law.
According to InSight Crime, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has focused his efforts on strengthening security forces through increased funding and expanded powers. Despite the increase in resources, the lack of funding in previous years continues to make law enforcers vulnerable to bribery, the organization dedicated to the study of organized crime in Latin America indicated. Between 2013 and 2017, nearly 1,000 officers, including senior officials, were dismissed, almost half for alleged criminal conduct linked to extortion, narcotrafficking, and the use of police vehicles to transport narcotics, InSight Crime reported.
Prevention first
Experts agree that the crime and security situation in Ecuador must be addressed with a comprehensive approach that puts prevention at its core.
“The Ecuadorian Navy’s Center for Credibility and Trust is a counterintelligence measure. You can’t improve security if you don’t first identify those who are already infiltrated and are part of organized crime,” Pinto said. “Without that preliminary phase, no strategy is going to work.”
For Vanessa Cárdenas, a researcher on organized crime at the Observatory of International Affairs at Finis Terrae University in Chile, improving both intelligence capabilities and police equipment and training, as well as strengthening the prison system is essential in Ecuador. “[We must] make progress in the area of prevention, to which countries tend to allocate few resources because it is not visible and does not yield immediate results,” she told Diálogo.
“Beyond the increase in drug seizures, we must understand that there is a relationship between security and development. The rule is clear: Greater equity means less violence in a society,” Pinto said.
“Any initiative to combat transnational crime that integrates regional and international cooperation is very positive for Ecuador,” Cárdenas concluded. “Centers such as the recently inaugurated one can have a very positive impact, as long as they have real autonomy and oversight from civil authorities.”
