A/HRC/60/66
Argentina, the 2022 census included a question about Indigenous self-identification for every
household member. If the response was affirmative, additional questions were asked about
the specific Indigenous group with which the person identified and whether the person spoke
or understood the native language of that group.36
37.
In Canada, the Disaggregated Data Action Plan is aimed at filling data gaps and
promoting data disaggregation as a standard practice. It is focused on collecting, analysing
and disseminating data relating to the employment of, among others, Indigenous Peoples.37
38.
In Chile, despite challenges, more information about Indigenous Peoples is being
gathered through the development of questionnaires, the generation of information, for
instance, on housing, the economic and political participation of Indigenous women, and the
status of Indigenous languages, and the validation of the results. The process includes
validating data-collection instruments with Indigenous organizations to ensure the correct
application of rights-based approaches from international instruments.38
39.
In the Russian Federation, Indigenous organizations proposed 80 locally relevant
indicators to the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs to improve the collection of data on
Indigenous socioeconomic and cultural conditions. At the regional level, the Khanty-Mansi
Autonomous Okrug-Yugra developed an automated system to monitor Indigenous
households and land use, which supports inter-agency coordination and facilitates dialogue
with private companies on impact mitigation and compensation.39
40.
The Collaborative on Citizen Data, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and
the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women), the International Union for Conservation of
Nature and Natural Resources and the Statistics Division of the Department of Economic and
Social Affairs plan to establish a working group to promote collaboration with Indigenous
Peoples that will review existing tools and guidelines and make suggestions for the
adjustment of national statistics on gender and the environment to better capture the realities
and meet the needs of Indigenous Peoples.40
IV.
Role of data in achieving the right to self-determination
41.
Indigenous Peoples’ right to data is an expression of their right to self-determination.
In the context of the right to development, disaggregated data enable self-determination by
providing evidence for the purpose of ensuring the equitable participation of Indigenous
Peoples within the State and also by informing the participation of Indigenous Peoples in
evidence-based decision-making processes.41
42.
Without disaggregated data, it is difficult for Indigenous Peoples to measure the
changes occurring within their communities, to present their needs and priorities to States
and to assess the effectiveness of existing programmes.42
43.
In the Arctic, the Inuit Circumpolar Council has developed the Circumpolar Inuit
Protocols for Equitable and Ethical Engagement and the National Inuit Strategy on Research
to support Inuit self-determination in science. Within these documents, the need to recognize,
support and comply with Inuit rights to access, own and control data collected on Inuit is
stated. Having guidelines in place that emphasize the importance for researchers and data
collectors of engaging Inuit in their research, and being open to local and Indigenous
knowledge in the field, not only will enhance the quality of the empirical data, but also could
contribute to avoiding the reproduction of colonial structures.43 The National Inuit Strategy
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
GE.25-12012
Submission from the Office of the Ombudsman of Argentina (in Spanish).
Submission from Canada.
See, for example, the submission from Chile (in Spanish).
See, for example, the submission from the Soyuz Union of Indigenous Peoples and Salvation of
Yugra (in Russian).
See https://data.unwomen.org/resources/gender-and-environment-indicators.
Submission from the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
Norwegian National Human Rights Institution, “A Human Rights-Based Approach to Sámi Statistics
in Norway”, p. 37.
Submission from the Danish Institute for Human Rights.
7