C0008 Paraguay

In June 2022, the IRM received a complaint relating to FP121. The complainant raised a concern that as the government recognized and legally established representative of the indigenous peoples of Paraguay, Instituto Paraguayo del Indígena (Paraguayan Indigenous Institute, INDI) should be included in the Board of Directors for FP121 but that this has not yet taken place. INDI claims that they should be involved in every decision-making process with regard to the project that will affect the indigenous communities and that this process should involve the identification and selection of legitimate leaders who represent the different indigenous communities. In a virtual meeting with the complainant, the IRM obtained further information regarding the complaint, which the complainant wanted registered and processed by the IRM according to its procedures. The IRM thus commenced the eligibility determination for this case on 1 July, and the complaint was declared eligible on 28 July 2022. The case proceeded to the Initial Steps phase, where the IRM will explore options for problem solving or compliance review, in consultation with the complainant and other stakeholders. 

The IRM’s Compliance and Dispute Resolution Specialist held a series of meetings with several stakeholders, including the complainant, the national designated authority – Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development (MADES) of Paraguay – and the accredited entity – the United Nations Environment Programme. The initial conclusion of these rounds of meetings was that that the apparent disagreement had been caused by miscommunication and that the initiation of a formal process would likely not be needed. More specifically, during the calls, the National Designated Authority stated that its intention was to offer the complainant a seat on the steering committee of the project and that only several delays had prevented it. Following these initial engagements, the National Designated Authority reported to the IRM that, on 5 September 2022, INDI had been formally granted a seat in the JDP (Junta Directiva del Proyecto) or steering committee of the project. Subsequently, the complainant communicated to the IRM that the case could be closed.