Literacy: path to power
	Program by the people
	The building begins

Indigenous peoples site at the IDB's web page

By Roger Hamilton

Anthropologist Luis José Azárate interview community members in the village of Caña Blanca, Panamá.

In the years following, the Bank also began to finance projects specifically designed to foster indigenous development, thus taking a proactive as well as a reactive approach. Most significantly, the Bank enlisted the collaboration of indigenous communities themselves in designing and carrying out development projects in a way that respects their culture and identity.

Today, the IDB is seeking to “mainstream” indigenous development by addressing the needs and concerns of native communities in its regular operations. In this way, indigenous peoples will have access to benefits that would formerly have been denied them because of sociocultural factors, prejudice or an urban bias.

In its work in indigenous development, the IDB operates within mandate established by its own Board of Governors as well as a number of international agreements and declarations. Principal among these are Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization, which recognizes the aspirations of indigenous peoples to “exercise control over their institutions, ways of life and economic development and to maintain and develop their identities, languages and religions, within the framework of the states in which they live.” Another was the agreement establishing the Indigenous Peoples Fund, and documents on indigenous peoples’ rights under preparation in the United Nations and the Organization of American States.

In 1994 the Bank created the Indigenous Peoples and Community Development Unit to serve as a focal point for IDB policies and lending operations in this field.

Following are some examples of the more than 250 projects the IDB has funded since 1979 that benefit or otherwise impact indigenous communities.

Trained through an IDB project, Mayan descendents in Indian Church, Belize, grow habanera chiles for export.

Mexico: Small projects in collaboration with indigenous organizations and communities in the southern states of Chiapas, Guerrero and Oaxaca.

Peru: A project to strengthen the govern-ment’s Indigenous Populations Program Unit and provide technical support to the Confederation of Nationalities of the Peruvian Amazon.

Guatemala: A major loan to help the country rebuild after the long-standing civil conflict. While not exclusively targeted at indigenous peoples, more than 80 percent of the population in the project area is indigenous, and local (i.e. indigenous) peoples will make many of the decisions regarding projects.

Panama: A sustainable development program for the Province of Darién in which indigenous communities participate in the planning process, and which will include demarcation of indigenous lands.

Argentina: A program to assist vulnerable groups, including activities to overcome cultural barriers between the state and native communities and to engage indigenous organizations in the provision of services.

The Bank has also funded social investment programs in Peru, Guatemala, Guyana and Bolivia, that included measures to remove barriers that make it difficult for indigenous communities to participate. In addition, some 40 indigenous organizations have received funding through the Bank’s Small Projects Program.