The Permanent Forum recommends that the General Assembly consider establishing a new procedure, in collaboration with indigenous peoples, to guarantee the effective participation of representatives of indigenous peoples and, in particular, indigenous governance institutions, in the seventieth session of the Assembly, including a corresponding accreditation mechanism.
As part of its mandate on the environment, the Permanent Forum has raised concerns and made recommendations pertaining to indigenous peoples and forests. The Forum has consistently recommended that the United Nations Forum on Forests and forest-related United Nations bodies develop effective means to monitor and verify the participation of indigenous peoples in forest policymaking and sustainable forest management, and establish a mechanism, with the participation of indigenous peoples, to assess the performance of governmental and intergovernmental commitments and obligations to uphold and respect indigenous peoples’ rights (see E/C.19/2004/23).