The Forum welcomes the initiative of UNESCO to draft a convention on intangible heritage and requests the participation, consultation and dialogue with indigenous peoples and with the Forum.
Recalling its workshop on data collection and disaggregation concerning indigenous peoples (see E/C.19/2004/2), the Forum takes note with satisfaction of the recommendations and intends to: a) Request the World Bank to undertake a study on poverty and indigenous peoples in connection with disaggregation of data, and to present the results to the Forum at its fifth session; b) Devote in-sessional time to in-depth discussions and exchange of good practices concerning the disaggregation of data.
The Permanent Forum recommends that Member States, the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals and the United Nations system ensure that the processes relating to the definition of the development agenda beyond 2015 are formulated in accordance with the objectives of sustainable development, as defined in the Indigenous Peoples’ International Declaration on Sustainable Development and Self-Determination, adopted by the Indigenous Peoples’ International Conference on Sustainable Development and Self-Determination, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2012, and also recommends that culture be affirmed as the fourth pillar of sustainable development.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the fact that the International Union for Conservation of Nature, in cooperation with indigenous peoples, is undertaking preparations for the World Summit of Indigenous Peoples and Nature to be convened during the upcoming World Conservation Congress, which will be held in Marseille, France, in September 2021. The summit is aimed at providing an opportunity to highlight and exchange information about the contributions of indigenous peoples to sustaining biodiversity, combating climate change and promoting sustainable development. The Forum recommends that Member States, international organizations and NGOs support the participation of indigenous peoples in the summit. The Forum invites the International Union for Conservation of Nature to share the outcomes of the summit at the Forum’s twenty-first session in 2022.
The Permanent Forum strongly encourages States to provide disaggregated data on health and social welfare indicators for indigenous populations in order to better assist in the monitoring and evaluation of outcomes at the national and international levels.
The Permanent Forum calls upon the member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to recognize the collective rights of indigenous peoples, and calls on ASEAN to ensure that the rights of indigenous peoples are integrated into the development process of the ASEAN charter.
Recalling the recommendation contained in the report of its fifteenth session (E/2016/43-E/C.19/2016/11, para. 52), the Permanent Forum urges States to take measures for settlement, protection and security in post-conflict areas and for the construction of durable and lasting peace, promoting the full and effective inclusion of indigenous peoples, including indigenous women, in any initiative for peace and reconciliation. The Forum also recommends that the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and indigenous peoples, including women and young people, consider indigenous peoples’ traditional conflict resolution systems for achieving durable and lasting peace.
Special emphasis should be placed by States on the involvement of city and local government authorities in engaging and supporting young indigenous people to achieve the Millennium Development Goals at the local level. Priorities for local authorities should include the creation of local youth councils with the participation of indigenous youth in decision-making, the provision of meeting spaces for young people to gather and coordinate projects, develop youth leadership, support for youth artistic and cultural expression, promotion of sport for development and peace and access to information and communication technologies
The Permanent Forum expresses appreciation to Mr. Parshuram Tamang and Mr. Yuri Boichenko for their draft questionnaire for United Nations agencies and requests the secretariat of the Permanent Forum to use the questionnaire in seeking information from agencies for its future sessions. The Permanent Forum also supports requests from States that they receive a similar questionnaire and requests the secretariat to carry through this request, in consultation with members of the Permanent Forum.
The Permanent Forum invites the European Commission, through its Directorate-General for International Partnerships and European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations to follow and engage in the work of the Permanent Forum, including by the designation of focal points.
The Permanent Forum heard that industrial companies and authorities in the Russian Federation promoted certain “authorized bodies of Indigenous Peoples”, which in reality were run by State representatives claiming that only these organizations had the right to negotiate on behalf of Indigenous Peoples. In this regard, the Forum proposes that the Government of the Russian Federation revise the federal law on guarantees of the rights of Indigenous Peoples of the Russian Federation.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the expanded use of the Indigenous Navigator tool, providing Indigenous Peoples with the means to monitor the implementation of the Declaration, the commitments made at the World Conference and the Sustainable Development Goals. The Forum invites the Indigenous Navigator consortium to deliver a presentation at the twenty-fourth session of the Forum in 2025 and encourages donors to continue to support this invaluable data collection tool for and by Indigenous Peoples.