Knowledge

Taller regional de América Latina y el Caribe en preparación de la segunda reunión mundial del Foro de Pueblos Indígenas en el FIDA.

Africa Regional Workshop in preparation for the Second Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum at IFAD.

The Twa “Pygmy” of the Republic of Burundi are a small minority of around 80,000 people that self-identify as indigenous and are considered as such by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the UN system. 

In February 2013, the First Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples Forum took place at the IFAD headquarters in Rome, in conjunction with the 36th session of the Governing Council. In attendance at this inaugural meeting were 31 indigenous people’s representatives from 25 countries in Asia, Pacific, Latin America, Africa and the Caribbean regions. Of the 19 Asia- Pacific regional representatives, two were from the Pacific; Mr. Anthony Wale, the Executive Director Aoke Langalanga Constituency Apex Association (ALCAA), and Ms Rufina Peter, Senior Research Officer at the PNG Institute of National Affairs.

During the meeting the Pacific representatives highlighted the need for the Pacific to have a “separate identity” as per the outcomes of Asia Pacific regional preparatory workshop in Bangkok. The issue was one of visibility for the Pacific Region due to its unique, rich and diverse cultures and traditions, its significant land and sea area and its high biodiversity. The Pacific Regional meeting proposed three action plans, of which the Pacific Regional Workshop in preparation of the Second Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum at IFAD is a direct result.

The indigenous population of the Republic of Congo (RC) include the Baka, Mbendjele, Mikaya, Luma, Gyeli, Twa and Babongo peoples. Depending on sources, these peoples represent a small minority of 1.25 to 10 percent of RC’s estimated population of 4.4 million, primarily of Bantu origin.

Based on the successful experience in 2005 in reviewing the IFAD-funded projects with indigenous peoples by indigenous experts, independent studies were conducted on selected IFAD-funded projects in each region. The studies on IFAD-funded projects with indigenous peoples are aimed to support IFAD in enhancing its development effectiveness in its engagement with indigenous peoples. In general, the case studies:
a) Identified existing policies and institutions, good practices, key success factors and innovations in selected on-going IFAD-funded projects with indigenous peoples with a potential for scaling up and replication;
b) Assessed the implementation of the IFAD Policy on Engagement with Indigenous Peoples in IFAD-funded projects taking into account that the selected project has been approved before the approval of the policy; and,
c) Identified challenges and suggested areas of improvement in strengthening partnership between IFAD and indigenous peoples in order to address poverty and sustainable development with culture and identity.