Local Partner: Cambodia Indigenous Peoples Alliance (CIPA)
Background and objective: main priority needs for Indigenous peoples are food security (loss of traditional seed and land), preserving indigenous forests and ecosystems, support for livelihoods, and appropriate economic development among others.Cambodia has a number of laws and policies that protect land and natural resource rights of Indigenous peoples communities, however, these legal instruments lack enforcement, and the Government has granted economic land concessions to plantation companies without free, prior and informed consultation or consent of affected indigenous communities resulting in food insecurity. The main goal of this project is to bring together the leaders of the 131 legal Indigenous Peoples communities to raise their capacity and strengthen their initiatives for food security and sustainable resource management with recognition by the national government. This project seeks to also strengthen the solidarity and cooperation of indigenous organizations across Cambodia by conducting the 2nd Assembly of Indigenous Peoples in Cambodia, including collective representatives of the 131 legal communal communities developing and implementing strategies to promote and strengthen their indigenous food systems including seed preservation. At the conclusion of this project, leaders in these communities will have increased their ability to develop strategies in restoring their customary laws and practices relating to sustainable traditional food systems. Local partner information: The Cambodia Indigenous Peoples Alliance was first initiated on the principle of solidarity and unity by a group of indigenous peoples organizations’ and community representatives engaged in the Indigenous Peoples Learning Processes (IP Learning Processes) that begun in early 2011 through the support of Asia Indigenous Peoples Pacts. CIPA is officially composed of three indigenous community networks ,Indigenous peoples NGOs and associations and have worked comprehensively with other affected communities such as Prame, Bangkoeun Phal, Sesan, on shared concerns. Its mission is to build and strengthen the solidarity and capacity of indigenous peoples from local to international levels in order to promote their rights to self-determination, cultural heritage, land, territory, and natural resources. Their goal is to empower indigenous communities to protect and manage their culture and resources sustainably towards self-determination and community-based biodiversity conservation. Their objectives are to ;strengthen the capacity and understanding of indigenous peoples at the grassroots level according to the needs of indigenous peoples, including youth, women, elders, and children; build unity and solidarity by strengthening community organizations and networks of indigenous peoples at all level ; increase the participation and connection among indigenous communities and advocate for the rights and welfare of indigenous including implementation of relevant international and national policies related to indigenous peoples; and strengthen cooperation and work with stakeholders to mobilize all forms of support to indigenous people (technical, mental, budget resources, and materials) and for broad unity.
