Briefing on Voluntary Fund for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People,
and on Fellowship Program for Indigenous People

Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, the Voluntary Fund for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People was authorized to accept and administer voluntary contributions from governments, inter-governmental and non?governmental organizations and other private institutions and individuals for the purpose of funding projects and programs during the decade.

More specifically, the Voluntary Fund assists indigenous communities and organizations, which have proposed programs and projects that are in accordance with the main objective of the Decade of the World's Indigenous People: to strengthen international cooperation for the solution of problems faced by indigenous people in such areas as human rights, the environment, development, education and health.

However, as Mr. Paul d'Auchamp from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights explained: "non indigenous organizations may also benefit from the Voluntary Fund for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People, if the projects they propose, are designed to respond to specific indigenous needs, and if those projects are strongly supported by indigenous people".

Also, Mr. D'Auchamp pointed out that it was important, not to confuse this Fund, with the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations. Indeed, the latter has been established in order to assist representatives of indigenous communities and organizations, to participate in forums, conferences, and seminars that are related to the promotion and protection of Indigenous and Human Rights.

Finally, the briefing presented the Fellowship Program for Indigenous People. The aim of this program is to give indigenous people the opportunity to gain knowledge in international human rights in general and indigenous rights.

The underlying idea of this program is that the people who will have been awarded with a fellowship will be able to assist their organizations and communities in protecting and promoting the human rights of their people. Indeed, it is expected that each Fellow will, at the end of the program, be capable of giving training within their communities and organizations in the fields of international human rights and the rights of indigenous people.

By: Delphine Pastorel and Jean Boisvert

Notes:
-For more information on the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations, you may consult this website: www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/9/vfindige.htm .
-The deadline for submitting applications to the Voluntary Fund for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People, is on October, 1st, 2003. For any additional information, you can consult http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/9/vfinddec.htm or contact Mr. Paul D'Auchamp at pdauchamp.hchr@unog.ch.
-The deadline for applications to the Indigenous Fellowship Program is on August, 29th, 2003. For more information, you can send e-mails to: fellowship_prog.hchr@unog.ch or visit the following website: http://193.194.138.190/indigenous/fellowship.htm .

BACK