International day focuses on ‘health and well-being’ of Indigenous Peoples

“Post 2015 Agenda: Ensuring indigenous peoples' health and well-being,” is the theme of this year’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. Marking the occasion, the United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on the international community to ensure that these communities are “not left behind” and further urged that, “to create a better, more equitable future, let us commit to do more to improve the health and well-being of indigenous peoples.”

This international day was established by the UN General Assembly in 1994 with resolution 49/214 to raise awareness of the issues faced by indigenous peoples and encourage cooperation with the communities of member states they live with side by side with.  In keeping with this year’s theme, emphasis will be placed on the access to healthcare and improving the quality of health services for indigenous peoples.   

An observance of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples will take place at the UN Headquarters on Monday August 10th, where the second volume of the State of the World’s Indigenous Peoples report will be unveiled. The event will begin at 3:00pm in the ECOSOC Chamber and run for three hours; it will also be broadcast live on webtv.un.org.

In concluding his message for today, the Secretary General observed that, “indigenous peoples face a wide range of challenges to their health and well-being.  Most are eminently preventable.  They include inadequate sanitation and housing, lack of prenatal care, widespread violence against women, and high rates of diabetes, drug and alcohol abuse, youth suicide and infant mortality.  These issues must be urgently addressed as part of the post-2015 development agenda in culturally appropriate ways that meet indigenous peoples’ conceptions of and aspirations for well-being.”  For more information about the issues discuss please visit the resources provided below.

________________________________________

Related Links:

•    UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

•    United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

•   Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – Indigenous People

•    The Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (Established by the Human Rights Council)

•    Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples

•    International Day of the World's Indigenous People – 9 August

________________________________________

•    UN documents on “Indigenous People"