THE SESSIONS OF THE UNPFII

The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues meets for 10 days each year, at UN Headquarters in New York. According to the ECOSOC resolution that established the Forum (E/2000/22), the Forum may also meet at the UN Office in Geneva or at such other place that the Forum may decide.

It is a high-level advisory body that deals with indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, environment, education, health and human rights.

In addition to these six areas, each session has thematically focused on a specific issue. During the Forum's first six sessions, a specific theme was discussed each year. Since the sixth session, the forum has decided on a bi-annual working method of one year of policy discussion and the second year dealing with implementation. The implementation sessions do not have a theme.

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First Session
12 to 24 May 2002 - United Nations Headquarters, New York

 

Second Session

11 to 23 May 2003 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Indigenous Children and Youth

Third Session
10 to 21 May 2004 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Indigenous Women

Fourth Session
16 to 27 May 2005 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Millennium Development Goals and Indigenous Peoples with a focus on Goal 1 to Eradicate Poverty and Extreme Hunger, and Goal 2 to ahieve universal primary education

Fifth Session
15 to 26 May 2006 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: The Millennium Development Goals and indigenous peoples: Re-defining the Millennium Development Goals"

Sixth Session
14 to 25 May 2007 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Territories, Lands and Natural Resources

Seventh Session
21 April - 2 May, 2008 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Climate change, bio-cultural diversity and livelihoods: the stewardship role of indigenous peoples and new challenges"

Eighth Session
18-29 May, 2009 - United Nations Headquarters, New York
Review year

Ninth Session
19-30 April 2010 - UN Headquarters, New York
Special Theme: Indigenous peoples: development with culture and identity; articles 3 and 32 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples