A/HRC/4/32/Add.2 page 15 In 2004, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights expressed its concern that the Government’s efforts to improve health and safety in the workplace were insufficient, particularly in the mining sector and on banana plantations. The Special Rapporteur was able to note in situ that these continue to be problems requiring immediate governmental action. 47. Poor working conditions on farms growing flowers for export represent another common problem. Indigenous people make up the majority of workers and suffer health problems due to the lack of hygiene in the workplace. Thousands of children and young people are exploited without State supervision and are thus particularly vulnerable. In Cotopaxi, for example, there are farms where conditions are reminiscent of the worst periods of slavery, as workers are often paid a mere two or three dollars per day, for 20 hours’ work. 48. The Épera, Ecuador’s smallest ethnic group, live in Esmeraldas province and their current settlement dates back to the 1950s. They have complained of a lack of land, as their 400 members possess only 330 hectares. Their principal water source, the Cayapa river, is polluted and drying up. As a consequence, inhabitants of the community are suffering from various illnesses. They also report a major shortfall in basic social services. Although they received land, there have been no development projects to improve their situation and many community members are emigrating in search of other opportunities. Furthermore, other Épera are arriving from neighbouring Colombia, fleeing the armed conflict and placing further strain on the already precarious local family economy. 49. The Tsa’chila in Santo Domingo de los Colorados complain of the systematic loss of land, pollution of rivers and soil, a housing shortage, lack of bilingual intercultural education, a deficient health service and low health indicators, insufficient State support for development programmes and scanty municipal budgets. They ask that the “development with identity” concept be promoted, to provide opportunities to communities and slow the migratory flow of their members. 50. The canton of Guamote, established in 1944, now has 35,600 inhabitants, of which 90 per cent are indigenous. It has one of the highest illiteracy rates due to the lack of resources at the provincial and national levels. In terms of health, the child mortality rate is high and there are serious health problems. The people lack adequate technical assistance for production, and all of this has led to growing emigration. 51. Confronted with such problems, the State has promoted, among other measures, a development project for the indigenous and black peoples of Ecuador (PRODEPINE). Its first phase lasted for four years (1998-2002), with an investment of $50 million from the United States of America. The World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), indigenous and black organizations, and the national Government were all involved in this process. This project was rejected by a CONAIE assembly because of its harmful interference in the organizational framework of indigenous nationalities and was discontinued.