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 recommends that United Nations agencies, funds and programmes strengthen their work on migration and its effects on indigenous peoples, and develop policies and outreach programmes for indigenous migrant and urban peoples.
The Forum recommends that all relevant United Nations entities and Governments:
(a) Advise Governments to revise their national legal and administrative frameworks to ensure indigenous women’s equal rights and access to social and economic services and resources, including land ownership;
(b) Identify and give recognition to the capacities of indigenous women and their specialized knowledge in the areas of health, natural environment, traditional technologies, crafts and arts, and design appropriate employment and income-generating strategies;
(c) Provide indigenous women with the appropriate education and training resources so that they can effectively access and participate in mainstream national, regional and international economic institutions.
The Forum urges Governments, in addressing economic and social development issues, to make efforts to adopt general strategies that include considerations for the needs and rights of indigenous peoples in the policies, laws and administrative issues that affect them, and they should include participation and consultations with indigenous peoples. Governments should also consider implementing special policies directed to employment creation for indigenous peoples, facilitating access to credit and the creation of small and medium-sized businesses.
The Forum recommends to the United Nations Development Group that the indicators of the Millennium Development Goals be assessed and that additional indicators be identified to give fuller assessment of environmental sustainability.
The Forum recognizes the importance of the Millennium Development Goals in the realization of social and economic development for indigenous peoples, and therefore calls upon United Nations agencies, funds and programmes to work in collaboration with indigenous peoples to achieve such objectives.
The Forum urges international donor agencies, regional organizations and States to incorporate indigenous people’s issues in the formulation of sector policies for development cooperation and to address indigenous peoples’ issues in their joint development programmes and projects to ensure that indigenous peoples and their issues are effectively mainstreamed into their work.