Ecuador’s Ministry of Tourism announced the appointment of Sandra Naranjo as minister of tourism, effective July 1. Naranjo replaces Dr. Vinicio Alvarado, who has returned full-time to his post as Ecuador’s secretary of public administration, a role he continued to fill while also working as tourism minister, according to a ministry spokesperson.

Naranjo has spent the last five years as general coordinator of control and management of presidential commitments for Rafael Correa, Ecuador’s president. She holds a graduate degree in project design, management and evaluation for development from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLASCO). Naranjo also holds a master’s degree in public administration and international development from Harvard University. Her recent tourism-related work includes participation in a World Bank methodological proposal to measure tourism industry trends in Bali, Indonesia.

Naranjo takes office in the wake of the government’s increase in annual tourism spending from $40 million to $150 million. The new funds include support for infrastructure improvements including new roads, transportation systems and airports.  Ecuador expects to receive approximately 1.6 million visitors by the end of this year. Tourist arrivals have been growing by seven to eight percent annually in recent years according to ministry officials.

Infrastructure projects include the new Mariscal Antonio Jose de Sucre International airport, located 20 miles from the historic capital city of Quito in the Tababela valley, which opened in early 2013. The revitalized Tren Crucero, a modern version of the century-old train system that previously traversed the country, now offers three- and four-night journeys between the Andes and the Pacific Coast.

Quito is also the site of the country’s first subway system, now under construction and scheduled to open its first section by mid 2016. The first line will have 15 stations running across Quito from Quitumbe, in the city’s southern section, to El Labrador, in northern Quito. The completed line will serve 375,000 daily users.