The Forum decides to form a working group, including experts on statistics, to set directions for future statistical work, including that of the United Nations Statistics Division, and also decides that representatives from the Forum shall participate in scientific meetings to improve statistics in this area of work, such as the upcoming meeting sponsored by the International Association of Official Statisticians meeting, to be held in New Zealand on 14 and 15 April 2005, on the theme "Measuring small and indigenous populations".
The Forum also decides to give ongoing priority to two other cross-cutting issues: a. Data collection and segregation as a follow-up of recommendations by the technical workshop on data collection; b. Human rights. In collaboration with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Forum recommends that concerned State Governments conduct workshops, training courses and other programmes for indigenous peoples, on a regular basis, to enhance their interest in the cultural diversity of the world and thus increase awareness about preserving distinct indigenous peoples’ culture.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and UNESCO reinforce quality education by building indigenous knowledge and culture into education programmes and curricula, including education for sustainable development and for natural disaster preparedness, and promoting the use of indigenous language as the medium of instruction. The important role of indigenous learning methodologies, including experiential learning with community members outside of the classroom, should also be included.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the work carried out by ECLAC through the Latin American and Caribbean Demographic Centre (CELADE)-Population Division on the production and analysis of available census data, incorporating the perspective and participation of indigenous peoples in Latin America and the Caribbean, and recommends that ECLAC:
(a) Invite the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights to contribute to its work on indicators;
(b) Increase the number of technical studies that contribute to the development of culturally sensitive indicators in order to monitor Millennium Development Goals as part of a coordinated effort by other parts of the United Nations system;
(c) Build capacity and provide technical assistance to governmental officers and indigenous organizations in the production, analysis and use of sociodemographic information for public policies, in particular taking into account the 2010 census round;
(d) Mainstream indigenous peoples’ views in all relevant activities of the institution in the context of economic, social and cultural rights.
The Permanent Forum has, in recent years, expressed considerable concern regarding the situation of indigenous youth and the lack of disaggregated data thereon. In 2016, the Forum decided to include a recurring item on indigenous youth in the agenda of its annual sessions and has issued several youth-specific recommendations. The Forum welcomes the progress made and encourages further action by indigenous organizations and youth, as well as by members of the United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development and the Inter-Agency Support Group on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues, in implementing those recommendations.
The Permanent Forum recommends that FAO, in coordination with indigenous peoples, organize training and other capacity-building development, as well as establish mechanisms for engagement such as working groups and appropriate representation of indigenous peoples in relevant instruments and bodies of FAO, and provide a progress report on those activities to the Forum at its fifteenth session.
The Permanent Forum thanks countries in Asia that have already incorporated indigenous languages into primary education and urges Member States and the United Nations system to provide funding to implement policies related to indigenous languages and ensure the incorporation of indigenous languages into the curricula at all education levels.
Indigenous communities and organizations are urged to: (a) establish effective arrangements for the participation of indigenous parents and community members in decision-making regarding the planning, delivery and evaluation of education services for their children; (b) actively participate in the monitoring of progress towards the achievement of Millennium Development Goal 2; c) Improve the coordination between indigenous and teachers' organizations to assess curricula gaps and improve teacher-training modules on indigenous needs
Recalling the international expert Workshop on Data Collection and Disaggregation for Indigenous Peoples (see E/C.19/2004/2, for the report thereon), the Forum welcomes the collaboration with the United Nations Statistics Division in reviewing national practices in data collection and dissemination in the areas of ethnicity, language and religion and looks forward to the Demographic Yearbook special topic which will include data and analysis relevant to indigenous peoples. The Forum is also pleased to note that data on national and/or ethnic groups are being made available online by the Statistics Division at the following website: http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/dybcens.htm
In light of this work, as well as the 2010 World Population and Housing Census Program, the Forum supports the Statistics Division in: (a) continuing its work in reviewing national practices in data collection and dissemination on issues relevant to indigenous peoples; (b) considering the extent to which the revision of the Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses can further address national and international data needs by facilitating the collection of data on indigenous peoples; c) Continuing to follow the recommendations of the international expert Workshop on Data Collection and Disaggregation for Indigenous Peoples; (d) Strengthening user-producer consultation in data collection and dissemination efforts
Recognizing that States cannot address indigenous education issues alone or in isolation, indigenous representatives and organizations of indigenous peoples should prepare to engage with Governments to facilitate the indigenous education goals of participation, access, attainment, indigenous languages, proficiency in the national language and at least one international language and numeracy, capacity-building, appreciation, understanding and respect for indigenous cultures, and anti-racism strategies.
The Permanent Forum recommends that UNESCO, as the primary United Nations agency dealing with education, science and culture, implement and strengthen strategies based on recommendations from the Permanent Forum’s six sessions, placing emphasis on the quality of education and taking into account the visions and pedagogies of indigenous peoples. This recommendation should be reflected in the contents and activities of the global plan of action and in the medium-term financial strategy 2007-2013.