My mother is the engine of my life. This brave woman taught me so much and has always been an inspiration for me. Like myself she is an architect by profession. But unlike myself, she had to deal with a lot of discrimination during her work life. Not only on construction sites, but also in our male-dominated Ecuadorian society in general.

Daniel Chiriboga

“Ayan” means “Mother” in Tsafiki, the language of the native Tsáchila people in the Ecuador’s province Santo Domingo where the majority of people make a living out of agriculture. Yet, women have a harder time finding a decent job in this rural province burdened by poverty. Jobs on the banana, cacao and coffee fields are mainly given to men and many of these jobs are informal and far from secure.

Mariana de Jesus Samaniego, a 77-year-old woman who has dedicated her entire life to agriculture, was the one who came up with the idea to create an unprecedented project that would provide new and fair job opportunities for women. Women who, for the most part, haven’t had the chance to finish school, are tied to the house and dependent on their husbands. It was two young men, Fausto Salinas, an agricultural engineer and the grandchild of Mariana, and his friend Daniel Chiriboga, an architect currently living in Germany, who, with the help of their mothers and siblings, picked up Mariana’s wish and created the project “Ayan”.

“Ayan is not about making money, it’s about changing our patriarchal society,” says Daniel. His words reflect the serious social challenges in Ecuador, where gender inequality and violence against women remain critical issues. In 2023 alone, over 330 cases of femicide were reported, according to the Alliance for the Monitoring and Mapping of Femicides in Ecuador (Alianza para el Monitoreo y Mapeo de Femicidios en Ecuador), revealing a widespread crisis that often goes unaddressed and has a high number of unreported cases.

Two years after its start, Ayan produces high-quality organic vanilla products – namely beans, powder and essence – and sells it on Latin American and European markets. Yet, Daniel avoids calling Ayan a business and prefers the term “family”. He says: “Everyone talks about the femicides that surround us, but few take action. Our Ayan family is the attempt to actually do something. It is a community project, a collective effort to confront deep-rooted societal issues and bring about real social change.”

Since Daniel and Fausto didn’t want to produce just anything, but something special, they chose vanilla, one of the finest orchids in the international market. Daniel explains why: “We associate vanilla with the strength of a woman thriving in a harsh environment like the Ecuadorian countryside.”

In the very beginning, however, it was rather difficult to find the right women who would identify with the project and wanted to join the Ayan family in the harsh countryside – not least because of their men. At the moment Ayan consists of seven women and three men. The women are not only being trained, working in the project and getting a secure income, they also live close by with their families in houses that the project provides since commuting to this remote area would be difficult.

Empowering women creates a ripple effect that can transform entire communities. It is not just about individual change, it is about reshaping mindsets and breaking cycles of inequality in both men and women. “When women are empowered, their partners are also challenged to grow. They must, for example, understand that any form of violence undermines the dignity and stability of the whole family, and cannot be accepted under any circumstance,” explains Daniel. This is one of the rules in the Ayan family.

One of the women working and living in the Ayan family is Rosa Macías. She says: “Finding stable work was hard, especially with my son’s illness. Since joining Ayan, I have a safe and steady job working in greenhouses. I can balance work and family because of flexible working hours and there is also support with things like school supplies and work uniforms. But what is just as important: I have enough money to take care of my son’s expensive medication. Working at Ayan has really changed my life for the better.” 

Another woman who gives an insight into her new life is Katty Torres: “At Ayan, I work with all my strength alongside an amazing group of women, I feel supported and heard. They’ve given me training and confidence to grow in my work with vanilla plants. Being part of Ayan makes me feel proud, knowing that what I do does not only help myself, but also my family and the community.”

Empowerment means creating the conditions for women to thrive socially, economically, and emotionally so that families and communities are built on mutual respect and shared responsibility. It is about cultivating an environment where abuse cannot take root, and a renewed social fabric based on equality can grow strong.

Daniel Chiriboga