Events

LJD Week 2021 | How to Support Equity and Inclusion for Indigenous Peoples in the Development Context

November 9, 2021

Virtual | Live Broadcast & Recorded

MULTIMEDIA

Indigenous Peoples (IPs) are custodians of our planet and possess vital knowledge to support global development efforts. However, IPs encounter constraints and barriers that prevent them from equally benefiting from development. Their identities and aspirations are distinct from mainstream groups in national societies and often are disadvantaged by traditional models of development. Weak and/or contradictory national laws and policies may limit their capacity to defend their rights and interests. International Financial Institutions (IFIs) have enacted policies for the inclusion of IPs, to foster respect for their rights, and acknowledge their distinct identities and culture, but several challenges remain. This panel will explore issues of equity and inclusion of IPs, and the role of IFIs in key areas, including in promoting their participation in the development process, supporting their own development priorities, free prior and informed consent (FPIC), employment opportunities, and support for IP-led businesses, among others.

The session will explore the following questions:

What are the challenges and opportunities provided in national laws and policies, and how to address or take advantage of them?
How has climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated challenges for IPs?
What tools do IFIs have available to address such challenges?
How can IFIs work towards improving IPs’ social, economic, and legal status?
In what sectors and areas can IFIs make a positive impact?
What are the similarities in terms of challenges for other vulnerable racial/ethnic minorities, such as Afro-descendants, or the Roma people?

SPEAKERS

Speaker

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz

Executive Director, Tebtebba Foundation, and Former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Victoria Tauli-Corpuz is an indigenous leader from the Kankana-ey Igorot people of the Cordillera Region in the Philippines. She is the founder and executive director of Tebtebba Foundation, an organization advocating to protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples worldwide. She was the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2014-2020), former Chairperson of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2005-2009), and an expert for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Victoria Tauli-Corpuz is also an advocate for women’s rights and served as a commissioner of the Philippine’s National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women.
@VTauliCorpuz

Albert K. Barume

Coordinator and Regional Expert, United Nations Security Council Panel of Experts on Mali
Albert Barume is acting as Coordinator of the Panel of Experts on Mali, serving the Security Council Sanction Committee established by resolution 2374 (2017). Previously, he worked as Chairperson of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP), a subsidiary organ of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Albert Barume has also worked for the African Union, International Labour Organisation (ILO), and several other international organizations. He has extensively worked and published on socio-economic rights in Africa, focusing on conflict drivers such as depletion of local natural resources, disappearance of Indigenous Peoples/communities’ livelihoods and lack of economic opportunities. He lecturers in a number of African universities.
@BarumeNmkra

Dianna Pizarro

Global Coordinator for Indigenous Peoples, World Bank
Dianna Pizarro is the World Bank’s Global Coordinator for Indigenous Peoples. She serves as a Senior Social Development Specialist in he Europe and Central Asia region. Dianna Pizarro has led and supported investment projects, policy lending operations, and trust funds focused to increase the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in Latin America. She has led the Bank’s regional dialogue with indigenous peoples’ organizations and promoted partnerships between indigenous leaders and governments in many countries. Prior to joining the World Bank, Dianna Pizarro worked for the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) where she supported the design of Indigenous Peoples’ policies and managed the trust fund portfolio for Indigenous Peoples.
@dianna_pizarro

Katherine Meighan

General Counsel, International Fund for Agricultural Development
Katherine Meighan is the General Counsel of IFAD and a member of the Executive Management Committee (EMC). She has over 25 years of experience in development finance and international institutional matters. At IFAD, she has led complex legal initiatives including amending IFAD’s Articles to enable lending to the private sector, structuring new financial instruments such as a unique impact investment fund for small-holder farmers, and leading the legal work to attain IFAD’s historic credit rating (as the first UN fund to be rated). Before joining IFAD, Katherine Meighan was Assistant General Counsel and Manager at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), where she led the legal work globally for Financial Institutions, Treasury, and restructuring/litigation.
@MeighanKatie

Shaza Zeinelabdin

Principal Social Development Specialist, International Finance Corporation
Shaza Zeinelabdin is the Principal Social Risk Officer and the Social Lead at IFC Environment and Social Policy and Risk Department. She has over 16 years of experience in social policy, assessment & risk management. At IFC, Shaza Zeinelabdin has worked primarily in the extractives and infrastructure sectors focusing on social risk management in the context of IFC’s Performance Standards including the standard on Indigenous Peoples. Currently, Shaza Zeinelabdin guides teams on complex policy aspects in East Asia /Pacific, Africa, and Latin America, including on free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC), benefit sharing, and other ethnic minorities. During her tenure in Oman, she worked extensively with Bedouins in remote desert areas.

Victor Mosoti (moderator)

Chief Counsel, World Bank
Victor Mosoti is the Chief Counsel in the International and Environmental Law Unit within the Legal Vice Presidency of the World Bank. Prior to this, he worked at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, Italy and at the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. In his current role, he manages a team that advises the Bank on a diverse set of issues touching on international, environmental, and natural resources law issues, as well as on the legal aspects of climate change, international waterways and projects in disputed areas.