Jorge Jamil Mahuad Witt (born 29 July 1949) is an

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

ian lawyer, academic and former politician. He was the 41st

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

from 10 August 1998, to 21 January 2000.

Early life

Mahuad was born in Loja,

. He is of Lebanese and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

descent. Mahuad attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

's John F. Kennedy School of Government, and received a

Master of Public Administration The Master of Public Administration (M.P.Adm., M.P.A., or MPA) is a specialized higher professional post graduate degree in public administration, similar/ equivalent to the Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the issues of ...

in 1989. He was a

US State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

-sponsored Fulbright Fellow.

Presidency

Mahuad initially ran in the presidential election of 1988, coming in a distant fifth place. He then served as Mayor of

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley on ...

from 1992 to 1998. Ten years after his first presidential run, he won the

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...

by a very close margin.

Álvaro Noboa Álvaro Fernando Noboa Pontón (born November 21, 1950) is an Ecuadorian businessman and politician. Noboa has been actively involved in politics, unsuccessfully running for the office of President of Ecuador in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2009 and 2013 ...

, the defeated candidate, asked for a vote recount, which was denied by the authority responsible. There was a severe economic crisis in Ecuador (including the 1998–99 Ecuador banking crisis), which had led to a 60% cut in the armed forces budget. Mahuad's popularity rating fell from 60% in October 1998 to 6% in January 2000. In the final days of 1999, he announced the

dollarization Currency substitution is the use of a foreign currency in parallel to or instead of a domestic currency. The process is also known as dollarization or euroization when the foreign currency is the dollar or the euro, respectively. Currency subs ...

of the economy of Ecuador, along with a number of

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...

measures. Mahuad was forced to resign after a week of demonstrations by indigenous Ecuadorians and a military revolt led by

Lucio Gutiérrez Lucio Edwin Gutiérrez Borbúa (born 23 March 1957 in Quito) served as 43rd President of Ecuador from 15 January 2003 to 20 April 2005. Early life Lucio Gutierrez, in full Lucio Edwin Gutiérrez Borbua, (born 23 March 1957, Quito, Ecuador), ...

. He proposed economic reforms that produced the "

" of the economy. He declared a freeze in bank accounts in order to control rampant inflation. This caused massive unrest as the lower classes struggled to convert their now useless

Ecuadorian sucre The Sucre () was the currency of Ecuador between 1884 and 2000. Its ISO code was ECS and it was subdivided into 10 ''decimos'' and 100 ''centavos''. The sucre was named after Latin American political leader Antonio José de Sucre. The currency ...

s to US dollars and lost wealth, while the upper classes (whose members already had their wealth invested in US dollars) gained wealth in turn. Under Mahuad's recession-plagued term, the economy shrank significantly, and inflation reached levels of up to 60 percent. During Mahuad's presidency, a historic peace agreement with

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

was signed, resolving long-standing border disputes. Under the agreement, Ecuador renounced its claims to sovereignty of the disputed territory under the Rio de Janeiro Protocol, and in return, Peru deeded ownership of one km² of territory to Ecuador. Mahuad concluded the peace with Peru on 26 October 1998.

Post-presidency

Mahuad is also a Senior Advisor at CMI International Group in Cambridge, MA. In May 2014, Ecuador’s National Court of Justice sentenced him to 12 years jail term on embezzlement charges.

References

External links

Extended biography (in Spanish) by CIDOB Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahuad, Jamil 1949 births Living people Presidents of Ecuador Mayors of Quito Ecuadorian people of Lebanese descent Ecuadorian people of German descent People from Loja, Ecuador Harvard Kennedy School alumni Christian Democratic Union (Ecuador) politicians Leaders ousted by a coup Ecuadorian politicians convicted of crimes Fulbright alumni