Indigenous Peoples
Oil and gas industry operations increasingly take place in areas inhabited or used by Indigenous Peoples. Companies have a responsibility to respect indigenous communities and protect their culture. Working with Indigenous Peoples and developing opportunities for them to participate in training, employment and business relationships is likely to benefit both the company and the indigenous peoples.
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Context, issues and good practice
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Summary of emerging good practice in oil and gas companies’ interactions with Indigenous Peoples
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Illustrating challenges and lessons learned
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The primary responsibility for protecting the rights of people, including indigenous communities, rests with governments. However, difficulties can arise due to differences between Indigenous Peoples and their national government over plans to develop land. Companies who fail to understand these situations run the risk of offending indigenous peoples whose co-operation they need, causing project delays and longer-term damage to relationships and reputation.
An important milestone in the expression of indigenous peoples (IP) rights came in September 2007 when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
In 2008, IPIECA established a Task Force to examine Indigenous Peoples issues relating to the oil and gas sector. The objective of the Task Force is to focus on these issues at an industry level and to share lessons from the various interactions that member companies have with indigenous groups.
In 2011, IPIECA published a document discussing interactions with indigenous peoples, and using case studies to show how companies have successfully responded to the challenges of working amongst indigenous populations.
Indigenous Peoples issue review
This issue review provides an introduction to Indigenous Peoples’ rights and outlines some of the reasons why these warrant special consideration by oil and gas companies. An overview of Indigenous Peoples and the policy and regulatory context relevant to the sector’s interaction with them is presented. Also, the document summarises some of the specific issues for oil and gas companies to consider when operating in areas where Indigenous Peoples, set around the three themes of consultation and engagement, key issues to manage and benefits sharing. The document concludes with a summary of emerging good practice in oil and gas companies’ interactions with Indigenous Peoples.
Summary of good practice
The issue review, Indigenous Peoples and the oil and gas industry: context, issues and emerging good practice, provides a summary of emerging good practices in relation to the oil and gas industry interaction with Indigenous Peoples that includes:
- General principles
- Social-economic context
- Engagement and consultation
- Managing impacts and issues
- Managing opportunities and benefits
The list is not intended as a comprehensive set of guidelines, rather. It provides general, entry-point considerations for companies.
Case studies
IPIECA is pleased to present a selection of case studies that outlines work our members have undertaken, illustrating company cases (or practices), challenges and lessons learned.
- Repsol - Policy on relationships with indigenous communities
- Talisman - Report on free, prior and informed consent
- Total - Building trust with the Guaraní Indigenous People in Bolivia
- BP - Village response teams in Arctic Alaska
- Hunt Oil - Participatory environmental and social monitoring in rural Andean communities
- Nexen - Aboriginal Education Award Programme (AEAP), scholarships and bursaries
- Woodside - Reconciliation Action Plan
Categories:
- Social responsibility
