Indigenous peoples and other communities with customary tenure
Land, fisheries and forests have social, cultural, spiritual, economic, environmental and political value to indigenous peoples and other communities with customary tenure systems. The Voluntary Guidelines call for the recognition and protection of their legitimate tenure rights. Developing capacities to use the Voluntary Guidelines can be important for many indigenous peoples and other communities with customary tenure. See Section 9 of the Voluntary Guidelines on Indigenous peoples and other communities with customary tenure societies.
Developing capacity to improve governance of tenure
Representatives of indigenous peoples in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama increased their knowledge of the Voluntary Guidelines and their use by indigenous peoples through a regional learning programme held in Panama. The programme addressed indigenous territories, including land, fisheries and forests, and covered the demarcation of boundaries, using for example Open Tenure. Following an initial learning event, the participants worked in their own communities to raise awareness of the Voluntary Guidelines and their use, analysed their national legislation related to indigenous peoples and their rights to natural resources, and assessed issues using the Voluntary Guidelines as a reference.
In India, a similar learning programme supported indigenous organizations in the North-east and Central India. Following the initial learning event, the participants organized workshops at community and state levels on the Voluntary Guidelines and the governance of tenure.