Ãlvaro Noboa
Álvaro Noboa Pontón ( born November 1, 1950 in Guayaquil ) is an Ecuadorian politician and entrepreneur. He stood as a candidate in 1998, 2002 and 2006 for the presidency of his country and defeated every time in the runoff.
Background and education
Noboa is the youngest son of Luis Noboa Naranjo banana magnate and his wife Isabel Pontón, he had a brother and four sisters. His youngest sister died in 1999.
He attended the Salesian School Colegio La Salle and the elite boarding school Le Rosey in Switzerland in Guayaquil. He then studied law at the University of Guayaquil and participated in a management training by the American Management Association in New York.
Entrepreneur
Noboa is considered the richest man in Ecuador, it is with real estate, industrial and commercial enterprises, as well as a legacy of banana plantations and trading company ( the Bonita Banana brand is one of the Exportadora Noboa, SA ) has brought about a billion-dollar fortune. Controlled by Álvaro Noboa Group Grupo Noboa is a family business that was built by Alvaro's father. When he died in 1994, he did not bequeathed his heritage Álvaro, but his second wife. Only after a long legal battle, which devoured $ 20 million attorney fees pursuant to Forbes Magazine, Alvaro was able to gain control of the Grupo Noboa. The Group comprises 110 companies, including plantations, banks and mines. With the banana plantations of Grupo Noboa 9% of the world Markes for bananas are covered. Noboas also holds 7.58% of Chiquita.
Working conditions on the plantations of Grupo Noboa were sharply criticized in reports by Human Rights Watch and the New York Times. In particular, the plantation operators child labor and the suppression of trade union rights was accused.
In June 2007 it was announced that the Exportadora Noboa has been since 2004, investigated by the Commissioner for the European Union's competition because of possible price-fixing agreements with other major suppliers of bananas, including Dole, Chiquita and Del Monte. Meanwhile, the suspicion, it will soon be a competitive process is initiated. The president of the Ecuadorian banana exporter association, however, suspected a move by the European Union to bring to Ecuador to withdraw from a dispute settlement proceedings before the World Trade Organization because of the EU 's external tariffs for bananas.
Politician
Noboa went political in appearance, as President Abdala Bucaram him chairman of the junta Monetaria made in August 1996, which, among other things oversaw the currency reserves of the country and the Central Bank for the first time. However, the Office Noboa lost in February 1997 after Bucarams fall.
In the following 1998 presidential elections Noboa ran for presidential candidate founded and managed by Bucaram Partido Roldosista Ecuatoriano. He was defeated in the runoff just the Christian Democratic candidate Jamil Mahuad ( Democracia Popular). After the election defeat arose between Noboa and Bucaram to disputes about their reasons, so that both then went their separate ways. Noboa also receives the face of scarce residue from 2.3 percent today to the allegations upright, Mahuad had won the election by fraud.
The 2002 presidential election Noboa founded his own political party, the Partido Acción Nacional Renovador Institucional ( PRIAN ), whose chairman he was and he ran as a presidential candidate. He was defeated again in the ballot, this time Lucio Gutiérrez, who had led a coup in January 2001, which led to the overthrow of Mahuad.
In the elections of 15 October 2006 Noboa came again as the presidential candidate of his party and took after it had been previously speculated about the withdrawal of his candidacy, on the first ballot surprising 26.8 percent of the vote the first place. However, in the run-off election on 26 November 2006, he was defeated by leftist opponents Rafael Correa ( Movimiento País ). In the election campaign, Noboa presented as God-sent savior of Ecuador; he performed with the Bible, and large crosses. He promised extensive, is hardly realistic classified government housing programs ( 300,000 homes). At the same time he continued to liberal market policies, saying, among other things, to withdraw government energy subsidies.
At the same time for the first round of the presidential elections held parliamentary elections Noboas wife Annabella Azin as top candidate of PRIAN in the province of Guayas was elected the nation's most individual voices in Parliament, in the Noboas party at the beginning of the legislative period 2007-2011 was the strongest faction.
In June 2007, Noboa had erected as the leading candidate of the national list of his party for the selected September 30, 2007 the Constituent Assembly of Ecuador. But his seat in the Constituent Assembly of Ecuador in 2007/ 08 he soon lost, as he has the time to disclose his assets to expire. His wife belonged to the Constituent Assembly until its dissolution to continue.
Under the following presidential elections on April 26, 2009 Noboa came in again, but finished with his worst result so far (11.4%) only in third place behind the re-elected in the first ballot Correa ( PAÍS ) and its predecessor Gutiérrez ( PSP).