"Dozens of hauliers staged a protest in the border city of Tulcan on Monday as concerns mount over the rising cost of goods amid an escalating tariff dispute between neighbouring Ecuador and Colombia. Footage shows transport units mobilising from Bolivar Canton to the Government of Carchi, with trucks and trailers honking along the highway. Protesters, forming part of the convoy, blocked roads while displaying Ecuadorian flags and signs reading  'We want to produce, not survive,' and 'The voice of the people has power'. "What we are asking is rather, in a certain way, that there be work for everyone because the only way to get out of poverty is by generating wealth," expressed protester Guillermo Pozo. The tariff measures have also affected the local commercial sector, where vendors report that sales of products to Colombia have fallen by up to 80 percent. "With the tariff measures that our president has taken and versus the binational situation we are experiencing, from thirty to fifty per cent, it has been a disastrous blow for the borders. I compare it to a tsunami, when the first blow is toward the borders," said rice merchant Holga Miranda, who has had to resort to bank loans to cover her expenses. Diego Guerrero, economist and former prefect of Carchi, warned that the impact could deepen due to the trade imbalance between the two countries, with the current deficit over $1 billion. He indicated that there are proposals through the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI) to explore new routes to Peru, Brazil and Bolivia, which could be beneficial but would represent long-term solutions. The tariff war between the two nations intensified after Colombia's Ministry of Commerce drafted a decree raising tariffs on Ecuadorian goods to 50 percent. The retaliatory measure came in response to Ecuador's levy increase last week, which saw duties on Colombian imports climb from 30 to 50 percent."