The Permanent Forum congratulates the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) on the establishment of an indigenous peoples’ forum on 18 February 2011. This is consistent with international standards and, in particular, with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It is also an example of good practice to be followed by other United Nations entities. The Forum encourages IFAD to: (a) actively promote the participation of indigenous peoples’ organizations in country strategies and programme cycles; (b) improve the design, monitoring and evaluation of IFAD-funded projects by using specific indicators for the well-being of indigenous peoples and by promoting an independent assessment of such projects by indigenous peoples; and (c) improving its advocacy role in disseminating its best practices in terms of development approaches with indigenous peoples at the national, regional and international levels.
The Permanent Forum welcomes such initiatives as the indigenous and local community, business and biodiversity consultation, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 12 and 13 May 2009, as a useful dialogue between the private sector and indigenous peoples, and encourages further discussions with a view to ensuring the effective implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples while stimulating community-level businesses based on the sustainable use of biodiversity through such creative partnerships.
The Permanent Forum calls upon States to recognize indigenous peoples, where they exist, consistent with the provisions of the United Nations Declaration, in their legislation in order to gather statistical data thereon, especially in the area of allocation of land and other natural resources for traditional use.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the Government of Paraguay should remain firm in its commitment to cooperating with indigenous peoples’ organizations in order to find emergency solutions to the extremely serious situation of the indigenous communities that have been wholly dispossessed of their land, and to implement policies to ensure the reconstitution of their territory.
The Permanent Forum calls upon the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs to publish a comprehensive report on the state of indigenous peoples, similar to the Human Development Report, to mark the Decade.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the dialogues to support indigenous peoples’ preparations for the United Nations Food Systems Summit. The Forum requests Member States and the secretariat of the Summit to guarantee the participation of indigenous peoples at the Summit with a view to ensuring due reflection of indigenous peoples’ rights and issues in the relevant outcome documents.
The Forum recommends inviting the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and other regional commissions to present a report of their activities concerning the situation of indigenous peoples and poverty in Latin America.