Indigenous Peoples’ Day, observed each year on 9 August, celebrates the contributions of the world’s indigenous peoples and underscores the needs of these vital yet vulnerable communities.

This year’s theme is Indigenous designs: celebrating stories and cultures, crafting our own future. Weaving is a traditional skill in many indigenous societies, but for it to be truly profitable, indigenous peoples need access to better technologies and markets.

María Ana González, a Mayan weaver in Guatemala and an IFAD project participant, is an example of what can be achieved when indigenous peoples gain this access. She is part of a group of 11 weavers, all with their own products and lines. Previously, they did not know how to calculate the costs of labour and materials and often sold their wares at a loss. The project, with support from a local private company, provided training and loans to upgrade looms. María Ana and her group have been able to add a modern twist to their traditional colours and they currently export much of their work to specialist shops in the United States. They now earn about 90 per cent more than they had when selling in local markets.

The profits are welcome, but María Ana says her work is about more than simply a business.

“I want to preserve traditions and provide opportunities for future generations,” she said.

This sums up the feelings of many indigenous peoples. Saul Vincente Vasquez, a board member of the International Indian Treaty Council, says, “We indigenous peoples of Latin America, we do not just want to reduce our poverty, we want to recover our wealth, our richness. By this we mean our way of life, our land, our language, our culture, our history. That is what we call development with culture and identity.”

Indigenous peoples cut across economic systems. They have different cultures, social institutions and religions. There are more than 370 million self-identified indigenous and tribal peoples and ethnic minorities in some 70 countries around the world. They are among the poorest and most marginalized people in the world. An estimated 70 per cent live in Asia and the Pacific region. In Latin America alone there are more than 400 different indigenous peoples, each with a distinct language and culture.

IFAD started working with indigenous peoples within a year of our inception in 1978 and our commitment has grown during the subsequent decades. Our work has been based on loans and grants at the country level, which make up an average of 22 per cent of IFAD’s total lending. At the international level, we are active in advocacy and policy dialogue. At the grass-roots level, we provide small grants in support of indigenous peoples’ self-determined development.

In 2006, the World Bank’s Grants Facility for Indigenous Peoples was transferred to IFAD. This was the beginning of the Indigenous Peoples Assistance Facility (IPAF), a demand-driven fund that finances indigenous peoples’ small projects based on their needs, priorities and identity. In May 2011, the IFAD Executive Board approved a grant of US$1.45 million for IPAF.

The 2011 IPAF call for proposals invites communities and organizations of indigenous peoples to submit their applications for small grants by 31 August 2011.

In addition, our regular loans and grants programme works on linking with IPAF’s small projects and grass-roots organizations. In 2010 alone, we provided about US$106 million in regular loans and grants supporting indigenous peoples’ development.

In 2009, IFAD approved a nine-point policy to drive our work with indigenous peoples. Launched at the Ninth Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the policy incorporates the principles of free, prior and informed consent; promoting equitable access to land, territories and resources; community-driven approaches; access to markets; and gender equality. It also includes valuing indigenous peoples’ knowledge and acknowledging their cultural heritage and identity as assets. The policy is based upon our experience on the ground and was developed in extensive consultation with leaders of indigenous peoples.

Mirna Cunningham, Director of the Center for Indigenous Peoples’ Autonomy and Development from Nicaragua and Chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, described our policy as “a tapestry, one that we have woven together, based on what we have learned”. She emphasized that the policy will use the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other international instruments as a framework.

The newly created IFAD Indigenous Peoples’ Forum will help to monitor and evaluate our new policy and build and strengthen partnerships between us and indigenous peoples. The forum will also promote the participation of indigenous peoples’ organizations in our activities at country, regional and international levels and at all stages of the programme cycle.