Cartel violence transforms Ecuador’s Posorja port from promise of trade to cocaine gateway

Cartel violence transforms Ecuador’s Posorja port from promise of trade to cocaine gateway

When the Ecuadorian government inaugurated the port of Posorja in 2019, optimism filled the air. Politicians hailed the $1.2 billion deep-water facility, operated by DP World, as a leap into modernity. For decades, Ecuador’s maritime infrastructure had lagged behind regional competitors. Posorja’s port – fitted with scanners, biometric controls, and state-of-the-art container handling systems – was meant to change that. The town of Posorja, with…