The Forum recommends that the World Bank continue dialogue and direct consultation with indigenous peoples, and that a permanent dialogue be held among indigenous peoples, the World Bank and the Forum.
The Forum recommends that the United Nations system continue its advocacy work on indigenous connectivity in preparation for phase II of the World Summit on the Information Society, to be held in 2005, taking into account the Declaration of the Global Forum of Indigenous Peoples and the Information Society and the Programme of Action. The Forum supports and applauds the decision taken by the Summit to establish multi-stakeholder portals that allow communication between indigenous peoples at the national level.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the organization by the Sami Parliament of Norway of the Global Indigenous Preparatory Conference for the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples, held in Alta, Norway from 10 to 12 June 2013. Member States, the United Nations system and indigenous peoples are urged to consider the Alta Outcome Document (A/67/994, annex) as the basis for consultations on the elaboration of the outcome document of the high-level plenary meeting/World Conference on Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and other relevant United Nations agencies further develop and enhance natural disaster preparedness and mitigation strategies involving indigenous peoples in the development and implementation of those strategies.
During the pandemic, indigenous peoples have been seriously affected by a lack of access to energy, health-care establishments, education centres, infrastructure that supplies clean water, and communication services and information technologies. Governments have made a range of efforts to support economic activity in their responses to the economic impacts of the pandemic. The relaxation of environmental and human rights standards in order to support activities that will promote economic growth, such as logging, mining, large-scale agriculture and various infrastructure and energy projects, threaten indigenous peoples’ territories. The Permanent Forum requests Member States to include indigenous peoples in the preparatory process and the outcome of the high-level dialogue on energy to be held by the General Assembly in September 2021, in order to accelerate action on achieving Goal 7 and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement.
The Forum notes with concern the unsatisfactory implementation of the World Bank’s policy on indigenous peoples, as documented by many of the Bank’s internal reviews, most notably the 2011 internal review report and the 2010 report by the Independent Evaluation Group, Safeguards and Sustainability Policies in a Changing World. Strict adherence to safeguards of indigenous peoples’ rights is necessary. The Forum recommends that efforts be directed towards compliance machinery within the Bank, both up front, when dealing with projects and design and approval processes, and in post-project enforcement mechanisms.
Bearing in mind that the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues was named at a time when the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples had not yet been adopted, and considering that the title of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples was changed, two years ago, from its previous title of “Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people”, we strongly urge the Economic and Social Council to recommend that the name of the Forum be changed to “Permanent Forum on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”.
The Permanent Forum reiterates the recommendation, contained in paragraph 17 of the report on its second session (E/2003/43-E/C.19/2003/22), related to the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The Permanent Forum invites OHCHR, in particular the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, to report on the situation of indigenous children to the Forum at its eleventh session.
The Permanent Forum encourages the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to continue its efforts in operationalizing the principle of free, prior and informed consent in its investments, including through the engagement of indigenous experts in project delivery teams.
The Permanent Forum recognizes that as the global economy promises to “build back better” from the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative that international financial institutions, including the World Bank, work in close consultation with indigenous peoples and invest in their communities. Indigenous peoples are partners in restarting the global economy while also maintaining their position given to them by birth as stewards of Mother Earth.
The Permanent Forum considers that the conclusion of the Global Preparatory Indigenous Peoples’ Conference on the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples, to be held in Alta, Norway, from 10 to 12 June 2013, should be considered as a firm basis for the identification of specific themes for the round table and panel discussions under the auspices of the General Assembly.
Aware of the massive exodus of indigenous youth to the alien environments of cities around the world and the discrimination, socio-economic hardships, weakened family networks and drug abuse, inter alia, affecting those youngsters and "street children", the Forum requests the World Bank, the ILO and UNICEF to conduct an in-depth comparative study of legal frameworks and social programmes addressing indigenous urban youth in selected countries. The study should assess key problems and best practices and should provide recommendations for the formulation of policies and strategies for future action.