OREANDA-NEWS. May 19, 2011. The tenth session of UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues started. The mandate of the Forum is to discuss indigenous issues related to social development, culture, environment, education, health and human rights, reported the press-centre of Sakhalin Energy.

The session is a dialogue between UN, Indigenous People and NGOs. Sakhalin Energy CEO and Chairman of the UNGC Network Russia Committee Andrei Galaev also participated in the Forum and took part in the discussion.

Sakhalin Energy shared its experience on the Sakhalin Indigenous Minorities Development Plan (SIMDP). It is a repatriate partnership project implemented by the company, the government of Sakhalin Oblast and the Regional Council of Indigenous Minorities of Sakhalin Oblast.

Sakhalin Energy has been supporting indigenous communities since the time it was set – back in 1994. Starting from 2006 the company has been working with the indigenous communities in the frame of Sakhalin Indigenous Minorities Development Plans. Each Plan is designed for five years. The second Plan (2011-2015) was developed in compliance with the principle of “free, prior and informed consent” of the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. Comprehensive open consultations were carried out in all indigenous communities while developing the Plan.

When talking about the SIMDP, Andrei Galaev said: “We’ve set a solid and sustained framework for cooperation with Sakhalin Indigenous People. It could serve as a model for effective cooperation between business and indigenous people on the global level.

The Permanent Forum was established by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).It is an advisory body to the Economic and Social Council with a mandate to discuss indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights. The Permanent Forum holds annual two-week sessions.

By joining the UN Global Compact in November 2009, Sakhalin Energy has become one of its most active participants. The company’s sustainable development performance is highly respected by international and Russian professional organisations and institutes.

Sakhalin Energy CEO Andrei Galaev was elected as a chairman of the UNGC Network Russia Committee in March 2010. His nomination was proposed by the UN Development Programme in Russia, supported by Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and unanimously approved by the Committee members.