October 20, 2010 - Nagoya, Japan
The GEF has been working with the local and indigenous communities on many of its projects and programs. On the occasion of the Convention of Biological Diversity COP10 taking place in Nagoya, Japan, the GEF presented this work at the official side event “THE GEF and Indigenous Peoples”.
The event started with a brief introduction by Gustavo Fonseca, Team Leader of Natural Resources of the GEF who highlighted the role of the GEF NGO Network and the Small Grants Programme as example of the effort the GEF has been doing in supporting and working with indigenous people.
Yoko Watanabe, Senior Biodiversity Specialist of the GEF, mentioned that in recognition of the important role that indigenous communities play in biodiversity conservation, the GEF biodiversity focal area identifies indigenous communities as key partners in achieving its strategic objectives. Ms. Watanabe also explained that the GEF Biodiversity Focal Area acknowledges the importance of the participation of indigenous and local communities in the design, implementation, management and monitoring of projects to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity.
The third speaker was Terence Hay-Edie, Biodiversity Specialist of the GEF Small Grants Programme who explained the approach of SGP to work with indigenous peoples. 17% of the total portfolio is actually implemented by indigenous peoples and this is due to the fact that SGP has pioneered different methods to work with these communities such as participatory video.
Messe Venant, SGP Grantee from Cameroon explained the experience of his communities using participatory video and how it has helped them connect with other communities dealing with similar issues.
To conclude, Johnson Cerda, an indigenous from Ecuador that is part of the GEF NGO Network explained the process to be part of the GEF NGO Network and the role of the network in supporting the work of indigenous peoples.