The Permanent Forum recognizes that the role of boarding schools for indigenous children has attracted considerable international attention. In some countries, boarding schools have had a very negative, even tragic, impact on the families, cultures and identities of indigenous peoples. At the same time, in some regions of the world, boarding schools are considered an important step for the successful social integration and education of indigenous children into mainstream society. The situation is complex. The Permanent Forum therefore recommends that an expert member conduct an in-depth comprehensive and comparative case study on this subject, with a focus on best practices. Furthermore, where negative impacts have occurred, the Permanent Forum supports the call of indigenous peoples for formal apologies from the States concerned.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the progress made in the development of community-based tools to monitor the implementation of the Declaration, the outcome document of the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and encourages collaboration and contributions from Governments, the agencies of the United Nations system, indigenous peoples and civil society organizations to the Indigenous Navigator framework and other tools in order to strengthen community-based monitoring of global commitments made under the Declaration, the World Conference and the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the International Labour Organization (ILO) continue to work with the Forum, United Nations agencies, financial institutions, bilateral donors and other interested parties to further the inclusion of indigenous peoples’ rights in high-level development policies and poverty reduction strategy papers, such as by raising indigenous peoples’ issues with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and its related Development Assistance Committee.
The Permanent Forum invites the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants to prepare a study on the situation of indigenous women migrants.
The Forum reaffirms the UNDP focus on implementing its policy of working with indigenous peoples at the country level, and urges UNDP to continue its work to develop a policy on land tenure rights with the participation of indigenous peoples.
The Forum, taking into account that States recognized the vital role of indigenous peoples in sustainable development at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, calls upon the United Nations system, other intergovernmental organizations and Governments to establish processes of meaningful participation and partnership with indigenous communities in those processes, including within the context of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework and the poverty reduction strategy papers of the World Bank. The Forum recommends, through the Economic and Social Council, that all States, organs and agencies of the United Nations take into account the Kimberley Declaration adopted by the Summit of Indigenous Peoples on Sustainable Development, held in the territory of the Khoi-San People from 20 to 23 August 2002, as well as the Plan of Implementation of Indigenous Peoples on Sustainable Development, when States begin to implement the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The Permanent Forum, through the Economic and Social Council, invites United Nations agencies, bodies, funds and programmes to identify areas of work within their mandates for collaborative implementation with indigenous peoples’ Kimberly proposals, taking into account the report of the Commission on Sustainable Development on its eleventh session and the multi-year programme of work of the Commission, for the further implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation as well as the fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals.
The Permanent Forum recommends that UNESCO, the Convention on Biological Diversity, UNICEF and other relevant United Nations agencies convene an expert meeting, in conjunction with the Forum, comprising intercultural and educational experts and United Nations agencies to explore themes and concepts related to bilingual, intercultural and multilingual education in the context of teaching in mother tongue indigenous languages.
The Permanent Forum urges States to support the economic activities of indigenous peoples, in particular indigenous women, by enhancing their equal access to productive resources and agricultural inputs, such as land, seeds, financial services, technology, transportation and information.
The Forum recommends that immediate steps be taken within the framework of the Commission on Sustainable Development to protect water from privatization and from bilateral and multilateral governmental agreements and other incursions that affect the integrity of waters and impoverish communities, particularly indigenous women. The Forum recommends that the Commission appoint a special rapporteur for the protection of water to gather testimony directly from indigenous communities of the world impacted by or targeted for water privatization, diversion, toxic contamination, pollution, commodification and other environmental injustices that damage natural and potable water supplies