E/2010/43 E/C.19/2010/15 41. The Permanent Forum commends the UNDP Regional Indigenous Peoples’ Programme in Asia for its sustained contribution to the implementation of indigenous peoples’ rights in that region. 42. The Permanent Forum commends the UNDP Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean for actively engaging with indigenous peoples throughout the region. 43. The Permanent Forum commends the Global Environmental Facility Small Grants Programme for its ongoing support for indigenous peoples’ organizations. Concluding recommendations 44. The Permanent Forum makes the following recommendations to UNDP with a view to strengthening its work on indigenous peoples’ issues in the years to come and ensuring that it remains faithful to its mandate on human development. 45. The Permanent Forum greatly welcomes the new global indigenous peoples’ partnership initiative that UNDP is developing with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and OHCHR to promote the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and ILO Convention No. 169. The Permanent Forum hopes to support that initiative, working in cooperation with other actors, by providing advice during the initial phase as well as throughout the process. 46. In order to fully address the fact that indigenous peoples lag behind in terms of the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, it will be necessary for UNDP to strengthen its policies to integrate human rights and indigenous peoples’ issues into all projects that affect indigenous peoples, in particular with regard to strategies and tools aimed at achieving the Millennium Development Goals. 47. The Permanent Forum is very concerned that indigenous peoples continue to report difficulties in participating in UNDP projects and engaging with UNDP offices. The Forum recommends that UNDP improve access to information on the Programme for indigenous peoples and ensure easier access to its staff members in country offices. UNDP should promote mechanisms that ensure a constructive and institutionalized dialogue between indigenous peoples and United Nations country teams at the country level, for example, by establishing advisory boards composed of indigenous representatives who can bring their perspectives to United Nations programming processes and policies. 48. The Permanent Forum recommends that UNDP utilize the expertise of Permanent Forum members by keeping them informed of programmes and projects involving indigenous peoples within their areas of responsibility and obtaining their input and involvement on proposed projects and subsequent implementation. 49. The Permanent Forum observes that UNDP projects focused on indigenous peoples’ issues are few in number and dispersed, and constitute a very small fraction in the overall UNDP portfolio. This is a serious concern, as indigenous peoples are lagging behind in the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and continue to face marginalization and exclusion. The Permanent Forum therefore recommends that UNDP allocate additional resources for projects that are focused on indigenous peoples’ issues and rights, including strengthening the regional programme in Asia and establishing new regional programmes in Latin America and Africa. 38 10-36959