The national flag of Ecuador, which consists of horizontal bands of the Pan-Colombian colors of yellow (double width), blue and red, was first adopted by law in 1835 and later on 26 September 1860. The design of the current flag was finalized in 1900 with the addition of the coat of arms in the center of the flag. Before using the yellow, blue and red tricolor, Ecuador's former flag had three light blue stripes and two white stripes with three white stars for each province of the country. The design of the flag is very similar to those of Colombia and Venezuela, which are also former constituent territories of Gran Colombia. All three are based on a proposal by Venezuelan General Francisco de Miranda, which was adopted by Venezuela in 1811 and later Gran Colombia with some modifications. A variant of the flag that does not contain the coat of arms is used by the merchant marine; this flag matches Colombia's in every aspect, but Colombia uses a different design when her merchant marine ships are at sail.

The Ecuadorian National Secretariat of Communication (Secretaría Nacional de Comunicación) issued regulations describing the applications and proportions of the national flag, coat of arms, and other national symbols in November 2009. Wikipedia