Existing international frameworks like the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007), ILO Convention 169 (1989), Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (2018), Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples guidance, and Sustainable Development Goals provide normative recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ rights and collective territoriality. However, these instruments are weakly operationalized, leaving migrant Indigenous Peoples exposed to discrimination, labor exploitation, territorial disruption, and exclusion from decision-making processes. Corporate practices and development-induced displacement further exacerbate vulnerabilities, particularly for women, children, and youth.

While Indigenous Peoples are briefly mentioned in relation to water tenure and vulnerable populations (para. 23a), our rights, knowledge systems, and governance are otherwise absent. This marginal reference reduces Indigenous Peoples to beneficiaries rather than rights‑holders and co‑creators of sustainable futures. The Declaration fails to explicitly affirm the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) as a guiding framework.