The Forum recommends that the special theme of its third session be "Indigenous women".
The impact of the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals on indigenous peoples should be assessed and reported in Millennium Development Goals country reports and other relevant reports by States and the United Nations system. Progressive assessment of the situation of indigenous peoples in the process of implementation of the Millennium Development Goals should be reflected in the Millennium Development Goals country reports. Guidelines for the preparation of the Millennium Development Goals reports should be refined to ensure that the coverage of the poverty situation of indigenous peoples is integrated. The Millennium Development Goals country reports should be prepared, where relevant, with the full participation of indigenous peoples.
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 welcomes the ratification on 15 April 2021 by the Bundestag of Germany of the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and reiterates its recommendation to all Member States that have not ratified said Convention to do so as early as possible.
The Forum decides to devote sufficient time during its fifth session to special events for the purpose of identifying the issues, challenges and positive measures of cooperation required to improve the situation of indigenous peoples in the above-mentioned regions (North America, the Arctic, the Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe, and Latin America) and invites the United Nations system, as well as relevant Governments, regional intergovernmental institutions and organizations, and indigenous peoples organizations to contribute to these special events
The Permanent Forum expresses its readiness to examine existing practices and
ways of developing various forms of administrative and territorial autonomy for
indigenous peoples’ communities whose representatives lead a traditional, nomadic
way of life, as part of the development of the guiding principles on indigenous
peoples’ autonomy and self-government as recommended in the study on indigenous
peoples’ autonomies: experiences and perspectives (E/C.19/2020/5). Such work will
be conducted by an online working group of the Permanent Forum. Indigenous
peoples’ organizations, representative decision-making bodies and institutions,
together with United Nations system entities, Member States and other stakeholders,
are invited to contribute financially and practically and to take an active part in the
work of the working group.
The Permanent Forum welcomes and endorses general recommendation No. 39 (2022) on the rights of Indigenous women and girls of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Recommendation No. 39 provides critical guidance to States parties on legislative, policy and other relevant measures to ensure the implementation of their obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, while taking into account the rights of Indigenous women and girls derived from specific instruments for the protection of Indigenous Peoples, such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and ILO Convention No. 169. The Permanent Forum calls upon Member States that have not yet done so to ratify without delay the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and ILO Convention No. 169.
The Permanent Forum urges Member States to make significant investments in bilingual and culturally appropriate primary, secondary and higher education programmes, including mobile education initiatives for nomadic, semi-nomadic and mobile communities. Furthermore, the Forum calls upon Member States to establish effective mechanisms to ensure Indigenous youth occupy central roles in policy and political arenas and to break down barriers to their full political participation and leadership.
The Forum regrets that Indigenous Peoples living in environmental ecosystems and latitudes other than tropical and subtropical forests are ineligible for funding, including the $1.7 billion pledge made at the twenty-sixth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Forum advises the Forest Tenure Funders Group to promote a dialogue with United Nations mechanisms on the rights of Indigenous Peoples when defining the ongoing and future process of funding for Indigenous Peoples.