Heavy rains have flooded 2,000 hectares of banana plantations on the Ecuadorian coast, website Lahora.com.ec reported.

Segunda Zona Agriculture Chamber president Evaristo Baque, told the website banana plantations concerned were in Puerto Inca, while fruit, cocoa, coffee and rice crops were affected in the zone of Montalvo.

He explained the infrastructure works needed to avoid flooding had still not arrived, and while the important agricultural areas of Manabí and Los Ríos were previously under control, Thursday rains hit several crops including cassava farms.

Baque told the website weather-related problems in winter were endemic for the agricultural industry in Ecuador, reflecting a lack of effort from the government to fix the issue.

"Infrastructure is needed to control the river channels," he was quoted as saying.

He suggested river dredging and planting trees on riverbanks as two measures that could be used to alleviate the problem.

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