Santiago Santi, Naporuna indigenous community health worker from the Amazonian region of Ecuador

Abstract

Santiago Santi is an indigenous man from the Naporuna ethnic group in the Amazon region of Ecuador. He has been a volunteer Community Health Worker (CHW) for 30 years in his community of El Edén, Orellana Province, Ecuador. He has published his memoirs in a book entitled 'Sé de donde vengo, no sé a dónde voy' (I know where I come from, I don't know where I'm going). He is one of the founders of the 'Asociación de promotores de salud Naporunas Sandi Yura', which currently includes 120 indigenous community health workers from 58 communities in the provinces of Orellana and Sucumbíos. The association is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and is the largest movement of CHWs in the country. Santiago reflects on his reasons for being a community health worker, the values that CHWs should have, the history of Sandi Yura, and where the organisation should focus in the future.