TURKIYE: Minister for Agriculture, Forests, and Environment, Geeta Chaudhary, has pledged to strongly advocate for the protection of the rights, identity, culture, and ancestral territories of Indigenous communities affected by climate change.

Speaking at a discussion organized here today by the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN) on the sidelines of COP-31, Minister Chaudhary emphasized that the impact of climate change and disaster on the territories, culture, and traditional lifestyles of Indigenous communities must be integrated into climate adaptation and development planning.

Noting that she attained her current position as a result of the movements and struggles for inclusion led by Indigenous communities, she reaffirmed her commitment to championing their concerns.

Indigenous activists and representatives participating in the discussion urged that the rights, culture, ancestral lands, and livelihoods of communities affected by climate change be prioritized within international climate negotiations and decision-making processes, including at COP-31.

They pointed out that while the impacts of climate change are intensifying in the Himalayan region, the concerns of the Indigenous communities most severely affected have not been adequately raised on international platforms.

They also emphasized that the situation of communities affected by the recent Rasuwa-Bhotekoshi disaster as well as the preservation of their ancestral lands and cultural heritage should be prioritized in Nepal’s climate negotiations.

Participants also stressed that when Nepal raises issues concerning the Himalayan region on international platforms, it should also present the concerns of indigenous nationalities, women, youth, and persons with disabilities in an integrated manner.