In September 2024, 10 years will have passed since the adoption by the General Assembly of the outcome document of the high-level plenary meeting of the Assembly known as the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples, and of its annex, the Alta outcome document. The Permanent Forum calls upon the Secretary-General and the President of the General Assembly to hold a “World Conference on Indigenous Peoples Plus 10” in August 2024 to allow Member States, United Nations entities and indigenous peoples to report on implementation of the outcome document, with the full participation of indigenous peoples.
The Permanent Forum is concerned that HIV acquisition rates are higher in Indigenous communities than in the general population. The Permanent Forum encourages the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS to continue its focus on Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum clarifies its call on United Nations entities, in its report on the twenty-first session (E/2022/43-E/C.19/2022/11), to elevate the discussion on Indigenous Peoples to the highest possible governance level of their entities to ensure system-wide ownership and support for Indigenous Peoples’ rights. It encourages Member States to ensure that United Nations entity leaders appoint Indigenous Peoples focal points who report directly to their senior staff member on Indigenous Peoples. The Permanent Forum recommends that United Nations entities employ Indigenous Peoples for these positions.
The Permanent Forum calls upon African States and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to safeguard Indigenous Peoples’ languages and to develop culturally appropriate education systems for Indigenous children and youth. The Forum also encourages the development of initiatives to prioritize Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge systems, especially for women and girls.
The Permanent Forum recalls that, in the outcome document of the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples, Member States committed to “developing, in conjunction with the Indigenous Peoples concerned, fair transparent and effective mechanisms for … repatriation of ceremonial objects and human remains at the national and international levels”. The Forum urges United Nations entities to accurately identify affected Indigenous Peoples and provide them with advance notice and applicable timelines for both identification and repatriation so that Indigenous Peoples can request the repatriation of their ancestral remains, cultural patrimony and sacred objects.