Testimonial

“This initiative resonates strongly with the work of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. The Permanent Forum has repeatedly called for the full and effective participation of indigenous peoples in designing, implementing and monitoring MDG related programs and projects. Indigenous peoples are the custodians of some of the most biologically diverse areas of the world. They have an amazing amount of traditional knowledge about their environment which is transferred from one generation to the next, and this knowledge is essential for the success and sustainability of development projects aimed at achieving the Millennium Development Goals.”

Elsa Stamatopoulou, Chief, Secretariat of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

BARKA’s approach toward a new paradigm of development:

• First do no harm
• Free, Prior, and Informed Consent
• Work with existing indigenous councils and governing structures; where none exist work to establish autonomous, local committees responsible for specific goals and projects, such as creating a local steering committee for BARKA’s forthcoming water/sanitation/hygiene project.
• Work with elders, women and children to help inform decisions and foster empowerment
• Indigenous African life is spiritual. Spirituality is fully integrated into all aspects of life. For this reason, it is crucial for long-lasting, sustainable growth to honor and recognize this reality through working closely with spiritual leaders and the keepers of traditional wisdom ways. BARKA integrates this into its methodology. For further information, see indigenous spiritual technology.

Message from the UN

Free Prior Informed Consent recognizes indigenous peoples’ inherent and prior rights to their land and resources and respects their legitimate authority to require that third parties enter into an equal and respectful relationship with them, based on the principle of informed consent.

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Division for Social Policy and Development, Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

See the Indigenous Rights Case Study to better understand how BARKA puts these ideas into practice.