Establishing monitoring mechanisms at the national and regional level for implementation of the UN Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples

This written statement is submitted to the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in response to the call for submission on: “Establishing monitoring mechanisms at the national and regional level for implementation of the UN Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples.”

 15 years after the adoption of The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), the reality is that there is a wide implementation gap between what the UNDRIP guarantees and how States actually implement the rights enshrined in the declaration they have signed. In 2017, 10 years after adoption the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the EMRIP issued key, detailed reports on the realisation and implementation (or lack thereof) of the UNDRIP. From 2017 to 2023, the events unfolding over these years have demonstrated limited progress in the realisation and implementation of the UNDRIP. Further, the last few years clearly demonstrate that, without the full and effective participation of indigenous peoples in decision making at all levels, implementation of the UNDRIP will be impossible.