Abstract
Ecuadorian Secoya are an indigenous community that lives in the Ecuadorian Amazon Region, Province of Sucumbíos, Shushufindi Canton, adjacent to the Palmeras del Ecuador plantation. His- torically, this community has been abandoned by the State for decades. Therefore, marginality and poverty have always been the general rule. On the other hand, this community lives among settlers mainly dedicated to oil palm plantations and have also suffered a strong influence of the Ecuadorian petroleum industry. For years, this community desperately sought support from any public and/or private institution to help them grow oil palm, since some of its members had already made incursions into this activity and had witnessed that oil palm could give them and their families the opportunity to live a dignified life and provide them with steady and permanent income that would ensure their access to healthcare and education services for their children. Mr. Elías Piyahuaje-Leader of the Secoya Community in Ecuador-was convinced of the social and economic benefits of this crop for his community. After several attempts to obtain support from Palmeras del Ecuador, he finally convinced 20 Secoya families to plant 10 ha of oil palm each. As a result of his own efforts and with the company’s support and assistance, they planted oil palms. The adventure started 8 years ago with huge expectations. These families went through many difficulties, but they have met their goal of having their own crops. The experience obtained during these years in terms of crop management and overcoming problems has achieved many of their hopes and dreams. Undoubtedly they now breath peace and optimism into the future, have become natural allies of the crop, and expect the whole community to plant around 400 additional hectares, with which they expect to cover basic education and healthcare expenses for their community through self-management. This oil palm planting experience of the Secoya community has been very gratifying and is cer- tainly providing a dignified life. Therefore, we hope that Mr. Elías Piyahuaje himself, an authentic and genuine leader, will share this incursion into oil palm and what it has meant for him and his community, as well as his future expectations with all those who attend this International Conference.  Los Secoya del Ecuador son una comunidad indígena ubicada en la Amazonía Ecuatoriana, provincia de Sucumbíos, Cantón Shushufindi, contiguo a la plantación Palmeras del Ecuador. Esta comunidad ha permanecido abandonada por el Estado por décadas, por tanto, marginalidad y pobreza han estado siempre presentes. Por otro lado, viven rodeados de colonos dedicados principalmente al cultivo de palma de aceite, y tienen además una fuerte influencia de la industria petrolera del país. Durante años, han buscado desesperadamente que alguna institución pública y/o privada los apoye con la siembra del cultivo de palma de aceite, pues algunos de sus integrantes ya habían incursionado en esta acti- vidad, observando que podría brindarles la posibilidad de una vida digna para ellos y sus familias, proveyéndoles de ingresos estables y permanentes, con lo que podían acceder a servicios de salud y educación para sus hijos. El señor Elías Piyahuaje, Líder de la Comunidad Secoya del Ecuador, estaba convencido de las bondades sociales y económicas que representaba este cultivo a su comunidad. Luego de diversos intentos, logró que Palmeras del Ecuador le prestara el apoyo que requería y convenció a 20 familias Secoya para sembrar 10 hectáreas de palma de aceite cada una. Con su propio esfuerzo y el acompañamiento y apoyo de la empresa, sembraron y empezaron esta aventura con mucha ilusión. Desde entonces han pasado ocho años, y con no pocas dificultades han cumplido la aspiración de tener su propio cultivo. La experiencia acumulada y superando las dificultades, sin duda respiran un aire de tranquilidad y optimismo hacia el porvenir. Se han convertido en unos aliados naturales del cultivo, y aspiran sembrar de manera comunitaria unas 400 hectáreas adicionales, con las que pretenden cubrir, mediante la autogestión, sus gastos de educación y servicios médicos básicos para su comunidad. La experiencia ha sido muy gratificante para ellos, y sin duda les está significando una vida digna. Por lo tanto, consideramos que el propio señor Elías Piyahuaje, un líder auténtico y genuino, comparta con todos los participantes de esta Conferencia Internacional lo que ha significado para él y su comunidad el haber incursionado en el cultivo de palma y las expectativas que tienen ahora de cara al futuro.