Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical December 8, 2021
Information
Carla Y. Davis-Castro
This report provides statistical information on Indigenous peoples in Latin America. Data and
Research Librarian
findings vary, sometimes greatly, on all topics covered in this report, including populations and

languages, socioeconomic data, land and natural resources, human rights, and international legal
conventions. For example the figure below shows four estimates for the Indigenous population of

Latin America ranging from 41.8 million to 53.4 million. The statistics vary depending on the
source methodology, changes in national censuses, the number of countries covered, and the years examined.
Indigenous Population and Percentage of General Population of Latin America

Sources: Graphic created by CRS using the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab with webpage last updated in July 2021; ECLAC and
FILAC’s 2020 Los pueblos indígenas de América Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrol o Sostenible: tensiones y desafíos desde
una perspectiva territorial; the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and World Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin
America in the twenty-first century: the first decade; and ECLAC’s 2014 Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in Latin America: Progress in
the past decade and remaining chal enges.
Notes: The World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab webpage covers 14 Latin American countries. ECLAC and FILAC’s report uses national
censuses from 17 countries, The World Bank report uses national censuses from 16 countries to estimate the population and notes
“for countries without census data available for the end of the decade, the Indigenous population was estimated by applying the
percentage of the last census to the 2010 projection of the national population.” The ECLAC report includes a table titled “Latin
America (17 countries): population of Indigenous peoples according to censuses and estimates, around 2010.” The population
percentage is based on the total population calculated in each source.
Definitions of Indigenous peoples also vary. The United Nations and many countries rely on self-identification of Indigenous
peoples. In counting distinct groups, this report uses the term “Indigenous groups” rather than “tribe,” “nation,” “ethnic
minority,” or “sociolinguistic group.”
A compilation of selected informational resources, covering languages; socioeconomics; land, natural resources, and climate
change; international organizations; and human rights, is available in the appendix as well as a list of national agencies that
oversee Indigenous affairs in each Central American or South American country.

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Introduction
Congress has long been interested in the status of Indigenous peoples abroad. In 1992, the 102nd
Congress enacted H.R. 5368 (P.L. 102-391) requiring the State Department’s annual human rights
report to “describe the extent to which Indigenous people are able to participate in decisions
affecting their lands, cultures, traditions and the al ocation of natural resources, and assess the
extent of protection of their civil and political rights.” Issues relating to Indigenous peoples
abroad periodical y have been considered in hearings focused on such topics as environmental
protection, energy opportunities, and human rights.1
This report provides statistical information on Indigenous peoples in Latin America, including
populations and languages, socioeconomic data, land and natural resources, human rights, and
international legal conventions. A compilation of informational resources on languages;
socioeconomics; land and resources; international organizations; and human rights are available
in Appendix A. National agencies that oversee Indigenous affairs in each country are listed in
Table B-1.
Terms
Definitions of Indigenous peoples vary. The United Nations (U.N.) has not adopted an official
definition, but instead relies on self-identification to categorize Indigenous populations around the
world; many countries do the same. However, the U.N. web page dedicated to Indigenous peoples
does state “Indigenous peoples are inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures and ways of
relating to people and the environment. They have retained social, cultural, economic and
political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live.”2
The annex of the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states “Indigenous
peoples have suffered from historic injustices as a result of, inter alia, their colonization and
dispossession of their lands, territories and resources.”
The Organization of American States’ (OAS) American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples repeats the U.N. Declaration language and adds “Indigenous peoples are original, diverse
societies with their own identities that constitute an integral part of the Americas.” According to
OAS estimates, more than 50 mil ion people of Indigenous descent live in the Western
hemisphere. This report examines those living in Latin America.
According to the Manual for National Human Rights Institutions that accompanied the U.N.
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, “Indigenous peoples have argued against the
adoption of a formal definition at the international level, stressing the need for flexibility and for
respecting the desire and the right of each Indigenous people to define themselves.… As a

1 For example: U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace
Corps, Narcotics and T errorism, Environm ental Protection in an Era of Dram atic Econom ic Growth in Latin Am erica ,
106th Cong., 2nd sess., July 25, 2000 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2000); U.S. Congress, House Committee on Foreign
Affairs, Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Energy Opportunities in South Am erica, 115th Cong., 1st sess., May
17, 2017 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2017); U.S. Congress, T om Lantos Commission on Human Rights, The Rights of
Indigenous Peoples in the Am ericas, 116th Cong., 2nd sess., November 20, 2020 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2020).
2 U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, “Indigenous Peoples at the UN,” at
https://www.un.org/development/desa/Indigenouspeoples/about -us.html.
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consequence, no formal definition has been adopted in international law. A strict definition is seen
as unnecessary and undesirable.”3
In counting distinct groups, this CRS report uses the term “Indigenous groups” rather than
“tribe,” “nation,” “ethnic minority,” or “sociolinguistic group.”
A 2019 United Nations report notes “the persistent invisibility of Indigenous peoples” and “the
need for disaggregated data” to address data limitations regarding Indigenous people around the
globe. However, the report notes progress in Latin America: “only two censuses included self-
identification criteria in the 1990 round, but by the 2010 round such criteria were present in 21 of
them.”4
Despite some advances in data collection, the sources cited in this report contain data limitations,
which are discussed in Appendix A. The countries listed in each table or graph of this report may
differ from others in this report based on the information available in the sources.
Population Data
There are various sources and methodologies for estimating the population of Indigenous peoples
in Latin America, including official sources based on national censuses and household surveys,
and other kinds of estimates such as population projections or data from non-governmental
sources. Latin America is home to an estimated 41.8 mil ion to 53.4 mil ion Indigenous people
according to several resources published in the last seven years.5 A 2015 World Bank report
acknowledges the gap that may exist between official and unofficial data: “official data on
Indigenous people are not conclusive, as many technical and sociological difficulties persist in
census data collection. Other sources based on estimates and unofficial data refer to 50 mil ion
Indigenous inhabitants in Latin America (about 10 percent of the total population). For this World
Bank report, however, we wil refer to the official—albeit imperfect—numbers provided by the
national censuses [41.81 mil ion].”6
Census projections forecast Indigenous population increases in many countries in part due to
populations that are younger on average than non-Indigenous populations and in part due to an
increase in self-identification.7 When the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin
America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) published a report with the Development Fund for the

3 United Nations, T he United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: A Manual for National Human
Rights Institutions, HR/PUB/13/2, 2013, at
https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/IPeoples/UNDRIPManualForNHRIs.pdf . For more information about the
United Nations, the International Labor Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization, see CRS
Report R43614, Membership in the United Nations and Its Specialized Agencies, by Luisa Blanchfield and Marjorie
Ann Browne.
4 United Nations, The state of the world´s Indigenous people: Implementing the United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 4th volum e, ST /ESA/371, 2019, at https://social.un.org/unpfii/sowip-vol4-web.pdf.
5 In this report, Latin America includes Mexico, the land mass of Central America (Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador,
Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama), and the land mass of South America (Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana,
Suriname, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay). T he exception is French Guiana,
which is an overseas department of France and is not included in this report.
6 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank, Indigenous Latin America in the Twenty-First
Century: the First Decade, 2015, at http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/02/2 4863854/Indigenous-latin-
america-twenty-first-century-first-decade, p. 24. Hereinafter: World Bank, 2015.
7 Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in Latin
Am erica: Progress in the past decade and rem aining challenges, November 2014, p. 40, at
https://repositorio.cepal.org/bitstream/handle/11362/37051/4/S1420782_en.pdf . Hereinafter: ECLAC, 2014.
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean (Spanish acronym FILAC) in 2020, the
censuses reported over 53 mil ion Indigenous people or 9.8% of the region’s total.8
Figure 1 il ustrates the total number of Indigenous people and their share of the total population
according to four sources: a 2014 ECLAC report (with population data from 2010), a 2015 World
Bank Report (with population data from 2010), a 2020 ECLAC and FILAC report using census
data from 2005-2018, and the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab with data last updated in 2021 also
using census data from 2005-2018.
Figure 1. Indigenous Population and Percentage of General Population of Latin
America

Sources: Graphic created by CRS using the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab with webpage last updated in July
2021; ECLAC and FILAC’s 2020 Los pueblos indígenas de América Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el
Desarrol o Sostenible: tensiones y desafíos desde una perspectiva territorial; the International Bank for Reconstruction
and Development and World Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade;
and ECLAC’s 2014 Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in Latin America: Progress in the past decade and remaining
chal enges.
Notes: The World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab webpage covered 14 Latin American countries. ECLAC and FILAC’s
report used national censuses from 17 countries, The World Bank report used national censuses from 16
countries to estimate the population and notes “for countries without census data available for the end of the
decade, the Indigenous population was estimated by applying the percentage of the last census to the 2010
projection of the national population. The ECLAC report included a table titled “Latin America (17 countries):
population of Indigenous peoples according to censuses and estimates, around 2010.” The population percentage
is based on the total population calculated in each source.
Table 1 shows a breakdown by country of Indigenous populations and their share of the overal
population. CRS created the following tables from several sources; publication dates and
methodologies differed. The countries listed in each table may differ from other tables in this
report, based on the information available in the sources.

8 Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Development Fund for the Indigenous Peoples
of Latin America and the Caribbean (Fondo para el Desarrollo de los Pueblos Indígenas de América Latina y el
Caribe), Los pueblos indígenas de Am érica Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrollo Sostenible:
tensiones y desafíos desde una perspectiva territorial, 2020, at https://www.filac.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Los-
Pueblos-Indigenas-de-America-lLatina-y-la-Agenda-2030-para-el-Desarrollo-SostenibleAutosaved.pdf. Hereinafter
ECLAC and FILAC, 2020.
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Table 1. Indigenous Populations and Percentages of General Population in Latin
America by Country
ECLAC & FILAC
LAC Equity Lab
ECLAC 2014:
WB 2015:
2020: Indigenous
2021: Indigenous
Indigenous
Indigenous
Population with
Population with
Country
Population
Population with
2005-2018 data
2005-2018 data
around 2010 (%
2010 estimate (%
(% of general
(% of general
of general pop.)a
of general pop.)b
pop.)c
pop.)d
955,032
955,032
955,032
926,003
Argentina
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
(2.3%)
6,216,026
4,115,226
4,176,647
N/A
Bolivia
(62.2%)
(41%)
(41.5%)
896,917
817,963
896,917
821,629
Brazil
(0.5%)
(0.5%)
(0.5%)
(0.4%)
1,805,243
788,935
2,175,873
N/A
Chile
(11%)
(4.6%)
(12.4%)
1,559,852
1,532,678
1,905,617
1,905,617
Colombia
(3.4%)
(3.3%)
(4.4%)
(4.3%)
104,143
104,143
104,143
101,870
Costa Rica
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
1,018,176
1,018,176
1,018,176
1,020,330
Ecuador
(7%)
(7%)
(7%)
(7%)
14,408
14,865
13,310
13,730
El Salvador
(0.2%)
(0.2%)
(0.2%)
(0.2%)
5,881,009
5,880,046
6,491,199
6,481,762
Guatemala
(41%)
(41%)
(43.6%)
(43.6%)
536,541
548,727
646,244
601,823
Honduras
(7%)
(7.2%)
(7.8%)
(7.2%)
16,933,283
16,836,877
25,694,928
27,526,158
Mexico
(15.1%)
(15%)
(21.5%)
(23%)
518,104
349,333
321,753
187,840
Nicaragua
(8.9%)
(6%)
(6.3%)
(3.6%)
417,559
417,559
417,559
416,080
Panama
(12.3%)
(12.2%)
(12.3%)
(12.2%)
112,848
112,848
117,150
N/A
Paraguay
(1.8%)
(1.7%)
(1.8%)
7,021,271
7,596,039
7,628,308
6,383,284
Peru
(24%)
(26%)
(26%)
(24.8%)
76,452
76,452
158,560
Uruguay
N/A
(2.4%)
(2.4%)
(4.8%)
724,592
724,592
724,592
724,592
Venezuela
(2.7%)
(2.8%)
(2.7%)
(2.7%)
TOTALe
44,791,456 (8.3%)
41,813,039 (7.8%)
53,363,900 (9.8%)
47,269,278 (9.2%)
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Sources: Compiled by CRS using the fol owing sources: ECLAC’s 2014 Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in
Latin America: Progress in the past decade and remaining chal enges; the World Bank Group’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous
Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade; ECLAC and FILAC’s 2020 Los pueblos indígenas de América
Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrol o Sostenible: tensiones y desafíos desde una perspectiva territorial;
and the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab with webpage last updated in July 2021 .
Notes:
a. ECLAC’s 2014 report covered 17 countries in Latin America with population figures “according to censuses
and estimates, around 2010.”
b. The World Bank’s 2015 report covered 16 countries in Latin America and the estimated population figures
vary by country from 2001 to 2012 with some projections for 2010.
c. The World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab webpage provided data on 14 countries in Latin America with the latest
population figures reported by each country varying from 2005-2018.
d. ECLAC and FILAC’s 2020 report covered 17 countries in Latin American with “the population of self-
identified Indigenous population according to the most recent census,” which varies by country from 2005 -
2018.
e. The population percentage is based on the total population calculated in each source.
Figure 2 il ustrates the range of estimates regarding the Indigenous population as a percentage of
the general population in each country. Bolivia’s steep decrease in the Indigenous population
reflects “reasons that probably have more to do with discrepancies in how the data were collected
between the last two censuses than with a real trend to negative growth,” according to the World
Bank.9 More general y, differences in data collection between censuses and across countries make
it difficult to estimate population changes.
Figure 2. Indigenous Population in Latin America as Percentage of General
Population by Country

Sources: Graphic created by CRS using the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab with webpage last updated in July
2021, ECLAC and FILAC’s 2020 Los pueblos indígenas de América Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el

9 World Bank, 2015, p. 10.
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Desarrol o Sostenible: tensiones y desafíos desde una perspectiva territorial; the International Bank for Reconstruction
and Development and World Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade;
and ECLAC’s 2014 Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in Latin America: Progress in the past decade and remaining
chal enges.
Note: The sources note that figures are based on national censuses. For more details see Appendix A.
Indigenous Groups and Languages
Following the International Year of Indigenous Languages in 2019, the United Nations declared
2022-2032 the International Decade of Indigenous Languages.10 Experts observed that four in 10
Indigenous languages around the world are in danger of disappearing yet figures on Indigenous
groups and languages vary among sources.11
Data on Indigenous ethnic groups
“As for the number and distribution of ethnic groups, the issue is even more problematic and the regional
censuses might not be the best source, because ethnic frontiers rarely match national borders and no country
keeps track of cross-border populations. Also, different ethnic groups sometimes receive… names given to
several unconnected peoples…. On the other hand, a single group or linguistic family might receive different
names in different countries....”
-- World Bank’s Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade12
Figure 3 shows the total number of Indigenous groups in Latin America as identified by three
sources. A 2009 UNICEF report identified a total of 655 Indigenous groups in 20 countries in
Latin America.13 The 2014 ECLAC report cites 826 Indigenous groups in Latin America although
it does not provide a country breakdown.14 Of these 826, about 200 Indigenous groups live in
voluntary isolation, which is defined by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights as
groups that “do not maintain sustained contacts with the majority non-Indigenous population.”15
The World Bank’s 2015 report identifies 774 Indigenous groups in 20 countries Latin America.16
The report adds “the total number of Indigenous peoples is not conclusive or fixed; rather, it
needs to be understood as a variable figure that is continual y changing as a result of new forms
of indigenization, ethno-genesis, and legal recognition.”17

10 United Nations, “General Assembly Adopts 60 T hird Committee Resolutions, Proclaims International Decade of
Indigenous Languages, Covering Broad T hemes of Social Equality,” press release GA/12231, December 18, 2019, at
https://www.un.org/press/en/2019/ga12231.doc.htm
11 United Nations News, “ Four in 10 Indigenous languages at risk of disappearing, warn UN human rights experts,”
August 7, 2019, at https://news.un.org/en/story/2019/08/1043871
12 IBRD and World Bank, 2015, p. 24.
13 UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes, Atlas Sociolingüístico de Pueblos Indígenas en América Latina Vol. I, 2009, p.
68, at https://www.unicef.org/honduras/tomo_1_atlas.pdf. Hereinafter, UNICEF, 2009. T his figures excludes 10
Indigenous groups from Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, French Guiana, Saint Lucia and T rinidad and T obago, which
are not otherwise included in the report.
14 ECLAC, 2014, pp. 38-39.
15 Rapporteurship on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact in
the Am ericas: Recom m endations for the full respect of their hum an rights, Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights, OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc.47/13, 2013, p. 4, at http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/Indigenous/docs/pdf/report -Indigenous-
peoples-voluntary-isolation.pdf.
16 IBRD and World Bank, 2015, p. 26. T his figure excludes six Indigenous groups from French Guiana.
17 Ibid., p. 24.
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Figure 3. Number of Indigenous Groups in Latin America

Sources: Graphic created by CRS using UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes’ (UNICEF) 2009 Atlas Sociolingüístico
de Pueblos Indígenas en América Latina; the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and World
Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade; and ECLAC’s 2014
Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s rights in Latin America: Progress in the past decade and remaining chal enges.
Note: These figures exclude French Guiana and Caribbean island nations.
According to several sources, Indigenous languages number fewer than the number of Indigenous
groups across the region as some languages are spoken by more than one group and some groups
no longer speak an Indigenous language (see Figure 4). A 2009 UNICEF report found 551
Indigenous languages spoken across 20 countries of Latin America while a 2015 World Bank
report found 558 and a 2021 publication by the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL
International) reported 881 Indigenous languages spoken across the same 20 Latin American
countries.18 Speakers of Nahuatl, K’iche,’ and Aymara number over one mil ion each and over
five mil ion people speak Quechua and Guarani.19 However, 13 Latin American countries have
50% or more of their Indigenous languages categorized as endangered.20
Figure 4. Number of Indigenous Languages in Latin America

Sources: Graphic created by CRS using UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes’ (UNICEF) 2009 Atlas Sociolingüístico
de Pueblos Indígenas en América Latina; the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and World
Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade; and SIL International’s 2021
Ethnologue: Languages of the World (Twenty-fourth ed.).
Note: Numbers indicate the number of living Indigenous languages. Not included are countries, primarily in the
Caribbean, whose only Indigenous languages are sign languages and Creole languages based on European and
African languages.

18 UNICEF, 2009, p. 81. T his figure includes six languages in French Guiana. IBRD and World Bank, 2015, p. 26. T his
figure excludes six languages from French Guiana. Gary F. Simons (edit or), Ethnologue: Languages of the World.
Twenty- edition, SIL International, 2021, at https://www.ethnologue.com/.
19 David M. Eberhard, Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig (editors), Ethnologue: Languages of the World, twenty-
fourth edition, SIL International, 2021, at https://www.ethnologue.com/.
20 Ethnologue, “ How many languages are endangered?” accessed July 7, 2021, at
https://www.ethnologue.com/guides/how-many-languages-endangered.
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Table 2 shows a breakdown of Latin America’s Indigenous groups and languages by country
according to three sources; the sources each have different publication dates and methodologies.
The countries listed in each table may differ from others in this report based on the information
available in the sources.
Table 2. Indigenous Groups and Languages of Latin America by Country
UNICEF 2009

Indigenous Groups
WB 2015 Indigenous
SIL International 2021
Country
(languages)a
Groups (languages)b
(languages only)
30
30
--
Argentina
(15)
(15)
(15)
4
4
--
Belize
(4)
(4)
(5)
36
114
--
Bolivia
(33)
(33)
(39)
241
241
--
Brazil
(186)
(186)
(201)
9
9
--
Chile
(6)
(6)
(8)
83
83
--
Colombia
(65)
(65)
(81)
8
8
--
Costa Rica
(7)
(7)
(6)
12
32
--
Ecuador
(12)
(13)
(21)
3
3
--
El Salvador
(1)
(1)
(2)
24
24
--
Guatemala
(24)
(24)
(25)
9
9
--
Guyana
(9)
(9)
(11)
7
7
--
Honduras
(6)
(6)
(8)
67
67
--
Mexico
(64)
(67)
(282)
9
9
--
Nicaragua
(6)
(6)
(9)
8
7
--
Panama
(8)
(7)
(8)
20
20
--
Paraguay
(20)
(20)
(19)
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UNICEF 2009

Indigenous Groups
WB 2015 Indigenous
SIL International 2021
Country
(languages)a
Groups (languages)b
(languages only)
43
52
--
Peru
(43)
(47)
(91)
5
5
--
Suriname
(5)
(5)
(12)
0
0
--
Uruguay
(0)
(0)
(1)
37
50
--
Venezuela
(37)
(37)
(37)
655
774
--
TOTAL
(551)
(558)
(881)
Sources: Graphic created by CRS using UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes’ (UNICEF) 2009 Atlas Sociolingüístico
de Pueblos Indígenas en América Latina; the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and World
Bank’s (WB) 2015 Indigenous Latin America in the twenty-first century: the first decade; and SIL International’s 2021
Ethnologue: Languages of the World (Twenty-fourth ed.).
Notes: This report uses “peoples” rather than “tribe,” “nation,” “ethnic minority,” or “sociolinguistic group.”
a. While UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes’ 2009 Atlas covered 25 countries in Latin America and the
Caribbean, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, French Guiana, Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago are not
otherwise included.
b. While the World Bank’s 2015 report covered 16 countries in Latin America, French Guiana is not included
in this report.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, almost 20,000 Indigenous language speakers from Latin
America reside in the United States.21
Indigenous languages also relate to issues such as biodiversity. A 2020 study states that “most of
the places with the highest concentration of biological diversity coincide with spaces inhabited by
Indigenous peoples whose members continue to speak the language of their ancestors” and
highlights Mexico and Brazil.22 A 2012 study explored “the co-occurrence of linguistic and
biological diversity in regions containing many of the Earth’s remaining species…Results
indicate that these regions often contain considerable linguistic diversity, accounting for 70% of
al languages on Earth.”23 The study specifical y notes Mesoamerica as a biodiverse hotspot with
more than 250 Indigenous languages. Additional resources about Indigenous groups and
languages can be found in Table A-1.

21 Languages counted by the U.S. Census Bureau are categorized as Aztecan, Sonoran, Misumalpan, Mayan languages,
T arascan, Mapuche, Oto-Manguen, Quechua, Aymara, Arawakian, Chibchan, and T upi-guarani. See the U.S. Census
Bureau, 2009-2013 American Community Survey, “ Detailed Language Spoken at Home and Ability to Speak English
for the Population 5 Years and Over: 2009-2013,” October 2015, last revised October 6, 2020 at
https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2013/demo/2009 -2013-lang-tables.html.
22 Claudia Gafner-Rojas, “ Indigenous languages as contributors to the preservation of biodiversity and their presence in
international environmental law,” Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy, (June 12, 2020).
23 L. J. Gorenflo, Suzanne Romaine, Russell A. Mittermeier, Kristen Walker-Painemilla, “ Co-occurring linguistic and
biological diversity,” proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 109, no. 2 (May 2012), pp. 8032 -8037.
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Socioeconomic Data
In a 2020 publication, the International Labor Organization (ILO) found that 45.5% of Indigenous
people in Latin America are poor (living on less than $5.50 a day in 2011 purchasing power parity
prices or PPP), and 7.1% are extremely poor (living on less than $1.90 a day in 2011 PPP prices),
more than twice the rates for non-Indigenous people.24
Using the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab, Figure 5 compares rates of Indigenous peoples living
on less than $5.50 a day to the general population in select countries of Central and South
America.
Figure 5. Rates of Indigenous People Living on Less than $5.50 a Day in Select Latin
American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page “Ethnicity –
Poverty.”
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented are
based on a regional data harmonization effort comprised of the World Bank and the Center for Distributive,
Labor and Social Studies, which may differ from official statistics. Monetary values are reported in USD 2011
purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. Last updated May 2021.
Access to Services
A 2020 ILO report describes that “an important transformation is underway whereby many
Indigenous peoples have migrated from their traditional territories to urban areas” due to factors
such as “changing aspirations, employment opportunities in agriculture becoming scarce, poor
income generation opportunities, a lack of adequate infrastructure, as wel as an increasing
resource scarcity related to climate change.”25 The ILO report finds that 52.2% of Latin
America’s Indigenous peoples are urban dwel ers.26

24 International Labor Organization, Implementing the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention No. 169
Towards an Inclusive, Sustainable and Just Future, February 3, 2020, at https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---
dgreports/---dcomm/---publ/documents//wcms_735607.pdf, p.96. Hereinafter, ILO, 2020.
25 ILO, 2020, p. 74.
26 Ibid., p. 57.
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The World Bank provides statistics on Indigenous peoples’ access to various services in select
countries of Central and South America, last updated in July 2021. The following graphs compare
Indigenous rates of access to the general population by country (Figure 6, electricity; Figure 7,
internet; Figure 8, home ownership; Figure 9, sewage; and Figure 10, water).
Figure 6. Electricity Access Rates in Select Latin American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity -
Access to Services."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented are
based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
Figure 7. Internet Access Rates in Select Latin American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity -
Access to Services."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented are
based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
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Figure 8. Ownership of Dwelling Rates in Select Latin American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity -
Access to Services."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented are
based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
Figure 9. Sewage Access Rates in Select Latin American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity -
Access to Services."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented are
based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
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Figure 10. Water Access Rates in Select Latin American Countries

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity -
Access to Services."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented here
are based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
Access to Education and Work
A 2020 ILO report found that Latin America and the Caribbean has the largest wage gap between
Indigenous earnings and non-Indigenous earnings at 31.2%.27 Similarly, the region has the largest
informal labor gap of any region in the world, a sector that employs 82.6% of Indigenous peoples
and 51.1% of non-Indigenous peoples.28 Among the employed Indigenous population, 31.7%
have no education, 39.3% have a basic education, 18.7% have an intermediate education, and
10.3% have an advanced education.29
The World Bank provides labor and education statistics for Indigenous peoples in select countries
of Central and South America, last updated in July 2021. The following graphs compare
Indigenous rates with general population by country (Figure 11, literacy; Figure 12, school
attendance; Figure 13, unemployment; and Figure 14, low-skil and high-skil employment).

27 Ibid., p.18.
28 Ibid., p.16.
29 Ibid., p. 81.
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Figure 11. Literacy Rates ages 18-65 in Select Latin American Countries (2021)

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity - Socio-
demographics."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented here
are based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
Figure 12. School Attendance Rates ages 6-25 in Select Latin American Countries
(2021)

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity - Socio-
demographics."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented here
are based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
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Figure 13. Unemployment Rates ages 18-65 in Select Latin American Countries
(2021)

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity - Socio-
demographics."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented here
are based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
Figure 14. High-Skill & Low-Skill Occupation Rates ages 18-65 in Select Latin
American Countries (2021)

Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab web page "Ethnicity - Socio-
demographics."
Note: The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported data. The numbers presented here
are based on a variety of sources, which may differ from official statistics reported by governments and national
statistical offices. Last updated July 2021.
The socioeconomic chal enges faced by Indigenous peoples also impact their health. In light of
the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the United Nations highlights that
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“Indigenous peoples face limited access to quality and cultural y accessible health services, which
already affect their health outcomes, such as high maternal mortality rates and lower life
expectancy.”30 A joint report from the United Nations and the Pan-American Health Organization
also highlights that the “deficiencies in access to services and in living conditions, which prevent
an optimal response to the pandemic, intersect with and reinforce the various axes of the social
inequality matrix, placing at a particular disadvantage the Indigenous population.”31 A May 2021
publication lists statistics from six Latin American countries that reported 137,315 Indigenous
people infected with COVID-19 and 5,482 deaths caused by COVID-19.32
In the appendix, Table A-2 lists resources relating to the socioeconomic standing of Indigenous
peoples in Latin America.
Land and Natural Resources
A 2017 World Resources Institute article stated “the precise amount of communal land is not
known, but many experts argue that at least half of the world’s land is held by Indigenous Peoples
and other communities. Some estimates are as high as 65 percent or more of the global land
area.”33 A 2015 report by the Rights and Resources Initiative found that legal y recognized land
rights are far less: at the global level, 18% of land is owned by or designated for Indigenous
peoples and local communities while in Latin America it is over 23% of the land.34
An evaluation of nine Latin American countries by the Rights and Resources Initiative found that
the forest area owned by Indigenous peoples and local communities increased between 2002 (171
mil ion hectares or 21% of the total forested area) and 2017 (236 mil ion hectares or 29.9%
percent of the total forested area).35 In 2021, several countries, including the United States,
together with numerous foundations, have committed to providing $1.7 bil ion to help Indigenous
peoples secure tenure rights over the land in recognition of “the critical guardianship provided
by...protecting tropical forests and preserving vital ecosystem services, and the global
contribution they make to climate change mitigation, biodiversity preservation, and inclusive and
sustainable development.”36
The United Nations’ Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean’s (ECLAC)
2014 report states that “over the past decade, booming international demand for primary goods
(minerals, hydrocarbons, soybeans and other agricultural commodities) has boosted economic

30 UN Inter-Agency Support Group on Indigenous Issues, “Indigenous Peoples and COVID-19 A Guidance Note for
the UN System prepared by the UN Inter- Agency Support Group on Indigenous Issues,” April 23, 2020, at
https://www.un.org/development/desa/Indigenouspeoples/wp -content/uploads/sites/19/2020/04/Indigenous-peoples-
and-COVID_IASG_23.04.2020-EN.pdf
31 United Nations’ Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Pan American Health
Organization, Social Panoram a of Latin Am erica 2020 , 2021, p. 18.
32 Fund for the Development of the Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean and, the Indigenous Forum
Abya Yala, Pueblos Indígenas y vacunación contra COVID-19: cuarto inform e regional, May 2021, at
https://www.filac.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/informe-acceso-a-vacunasTP.pdf.
33 Peter Veit and Katie Reytar, “By the Numbers: Indigenous and Community Land Rights,” World Resources Institute,
March 20, 2017, at https://www.wri.org/blog/2017/03/numbers-Indigenous-and-community-land-rights.
34 Rights and Resources Initiative, Who Owns the World’s Land? A global baseline of formally recognized indigenous
and com m unity land rights, September 2015.
35 Rights and Resources Initiative, At a Crossroads: Consequential Trends in Recognition of Community-Based Forest
Tenure from 2002-2017, September 2018.
36 United Nations Climate Change Conference, United Kingdom 2021, “COP26 IPLC Forest T enure Joint Donor
Statement,” November 2, 2021, at https://ukcop26.org/cop26-iplc-forest-tenure-joint-donor-statement/.
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growth in the countries of Latin America but has had its cost in the form of a growing number of
environmental, social and ethnic conflicts involving extractive industries located in or near
Indigenous territories.”37
In its 2015 report, the IACHR wrote that “through the implementation of its monitoring
mechanisms, the Commission has consistently received information evidencing the human,
social, health, cultural and environmental impacts of [extraction, exploitation, and development
activities concerning natural resources] on Indigenous peoples and Afrodescendent communities.
Many extractive and development activities in the hemisphere are implemented in lands and
territories historical y occupied by Indigenous and Afro-descendent communities, which often
coincide with areas hosting a great wealth of natural resources.”38 For example, a 2020 report
found that “industrial mining concessions and il egal smal -scale mining occur on more than 20
percent of Indigenous lands in the Amazon.”39
Climate Change
Indigenous peoples are particularly affected by climate change; they are also adapting to it and
participating in high-level policy discussions regarding climate change responses. According to
the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change (IIPFCC) established in 2008 as
the caucus for Indigenous participants in the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change
processes, Indigenous peoples “are especial y vulnerable to, and disproportionately impacted by,
climate change” and “play a critical role in climate change mitigation and adaptation through
their historic and effective role as stewards of much of the world's remaining forests.”40 In the
2015 U.N. Paris Agreement, Article 7 establishes the “global goal on adaptation of enhancing
adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerability to climate change,” which
“should be based on and guided by the best available science and, as appropriate, traditional
knowledge, knowledge of Indigenous peoples and local knowledge systems.”41
Global organizations are also consulting Indigenous peoples about managing the climate change
impact on biodiversity. The Convention on Biological Diversity published the first draft of the
Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework in July 2021, which includes the target to “ensure that
relevant knowledge, including the traditional knowledge, innovations and practices of Indigenous
peoples and local communities with their free, prior, and informed consent, guides decision-
making for the effective management of biodiversity.”42 Such targets are general y seen as critical
given that 80% of the world’s biodiversity can be found within Indigenous territories.43 Some of
the key messages from the 2019 Global Assessment of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
include “nature is general y declining less rapidly in Indigenous peoples’ land than in other lands,

37 ECLAC, 2014, p. 50.
38 Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, Indigenous Peoples, Communities of African Descent, Extractive
Industries, OEA/Ser.L/V/II, Doc. 47/15, December 31, 2015, at
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/reports/pdfs/ExtractiveIndustries2016.pdf , p. 9.
39 World Resources Institute, Undermining Rights: Indigenous Lands and Mining in the Amazon, October 2020, at
https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/Report_Indigenous_Lands_and_Mining_in_the_Amazon_web_1.pdf .
40 International Indigenous Peoples' Forum on Climate Change, "About the International Indigenous Peoples' Forum on
Climate Change," accessed on July 26, 2021, at https://iipfcc.squarespace.com/who-are-we-1.
41 United Nations, “Paris Agreement,” 2015, at https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/english_paris_agreement.pdf.
42 Convention on Biological Diversity, “First Draft of the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework,” July 5, 2021, at
https://www.cbd.int/doc/c/abb5/591f/2e46096d3f0330b08ce87a45/wg2020 -03-03-en.pdf.
43 Linda Etchart, “ The role of Indigenous peoples in combating climate change,” Palgrave Communications, 3, article
no. 17085, (August 22, 2017).
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but is nevertheless declining, as is the knowledge of how to manage it.”44 The same is said of the
decline in biodiversity.45 The report stresses that the “Indigenous and local knowledge systems are
local y based, but regional y manifested and thus global y relevant.”46
Table A-3 lists resources about Indigenous peoples’ lands, natural resources, and climate change
in Latin America. While the titles may not exclusively focus on Indigenous peoples, the
industries’ impact on Indigenous people is a part of the analysis of each resource.
Human Rights and Multilateral Instruments
Various international human rights mechanisms are designed to protect the rights of Indigenous
peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean. Table 3 identifies those countries that have ratified
or voted in favor of the following three multilateral instruments on Indigenous peoples’ rights:
International Labor Organization’s Indigenous and Tribal Peoples
Convention, 1989 (No. 169).47 The convention includes sections on land;
recruitment and conditions of employment; vocational training, handicrafts and
rural industries; and social security and health; education and means of
communication.
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
(UNDRIP).48 The 2007 declaration covers such topics as self-determination or
autonomy; land and environment; employment; religion; language and media;
education; discrimination and violence; and health.
American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (ADRIP).49 The
2016 declaration approved by the Organization of American States includes
sections on human and collective rights; cultural identity; organizational and
political rights; and social, economic and property rights.
Table 3. Latin America and Multilateral Instruments on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights
Voted in favor of
Voted in favor of
Country
Ratified ILO No. 169a
adopting UNDRIP
adopting ADRIP
Argentina
X
X
X
Belize
--
X
X
Bolivia
X
X
X
Brazil
X
X
X
Chile
X
X
X

44 IPBES, 2019, p. 14.
45 IPBES, 2019, p. 31.
46 IPBES, 2019, p. 32.
47 International Labor Organization, “Indigenous and T ribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169),” 1989, at
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C169 .
48 United Nations, “United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” September 13, 2007, at
https://www.un.org/development/desa/Indigenouspeoples/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2018/11/UNDRIP_E_web.pdf .
49 Organization of American States, “American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” June 15, 2016, at
https://www.oas.org/en/sare/documents/DecAmIND.pdf. For more information on the Organization of American
States, see CRS Report R42639, Organization of Am erican States: Background and Issues for Congress, by Peter J.
Meyer.
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Voted in favor of
Voted in favor of
Country
Ratified ILO No. 169a
adopting UNDRIP
adopting ADRIP
Colombia
X
Xb
Xc
Costa Rica
X
X
X
Ecuador
X
X
X
El Salvador
--
X
X
Guatemala
X
X
X
Guyana
--
X
X
Honduras
X
X
X
Jamaica
--
X
X
Mexico
X
X
X
Nicaragua
X
X
X
Panama
--
X
X
Paraguay
X
X
X
Peru
X
X
X
Suriname
--
X
X
Uruguay
--
X
X
Venezuela
X
X
X
Sources: Compiled by CRS using the fol owing sources: ILO’s web page “Ratifications of C169 - Indigenous and
Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169);” the U.N. web page “United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous People;” and the OAS’ official publication of ADRIP.
Notes:
a. International Labor Organization, “Ratifications of C169 - Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989
(No. 169),” at
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=1000:11300:0: NO:11300:P11300_INSTRUMENT_ID:312314 .
b. From the region, only Colombia abstained from the vote. See U.N, Department of Economic and Social
Affairs, “United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People,” September 13, 2007, at
https://www.un.org/development/desa/Indigenouspeoples/declaration-on-the-rights-of-Indigenous-
peoples.html.
c. In the footnotes, Colombia “breaks with consensus” on paragraphs within Articles XXIII, XXIX, a nd XXX.
See Organization of American States, “American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” June 15,
2016, at https://www.oas.org/en/sare/documents/DecAmIND.pdf.
The United Nations has a Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and in 2001 created the Special
Rapporteurship on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which promote the rights of Indigenous
peoples across the globe.50 In 1990, the Organization of American States created the
Rapporteurship on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to promote the rights of Indigenous peoples
throughout the Western Hemisphere.51 Table A-4 provides additional resources about the work of
international organizations with Indigenous peoples.

50 U.N. Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, “ Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous peoples,”
at https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/IPeoples/SRIndigenousPeoples/Pages/SRIPeoplesIndex.aspx .
51 Organization of American States, “ Rapporteurship on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” at
http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/Indigenous/.
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In a 2000 report, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) wrote “concern for
the human rights of Indigenous peoples and their members has been a constant feature in the
work of the Commission.”52 The IACHR has tracked its work involving Indigenous peoples. It
hosts multiple sessions per year to hold hearings regarding human rights issues affecting a
particular country or subregion of the Western Hemisphere. One of the categories for hearings is
the rights of Indigenous peoples. Table 4 shows the number of IACHR events by country
involving Indigenous peoples’ rights. It also shows the number legal cases brought by Indigenous
peoples against countries in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
Table 4. Human Rights Events and Legal Cases about the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples in the Inter-American System 1996-2020
Events on the Rights
Legal Cases brought
Country
of Indigenous Peoples
by Indigenous Peoples
Colombia
27
2
Peru
22
0
Guatemala
18
2
Ecuador
14
2
Mexico
13
1
Brazil
12
2
Nicaragua
9
2
Chile
9
2
Argentina
8
2
Panama
8
1
Bolivia
8
0
Honduras
7
2
Venezuela
5
1
Costa Rica
4
0
Paraguay
3
2
Belize
2
1
Suriname
1
2
Guyana
1
0
Regionala
34
N/A
Source: Table created by CRS using available data from the IACHR from sessions 91-178 (February 1996-
December 2020). The first column data comes from the webpage “Hearings by Topic: Rights of Indigenous
Peoples” and the second column data comes from the webpage “Hearings by Topic: Petitions and Cases.”
Notes: IACHR events include topical hearings, petitions, and precautionary measures, which may or may not be
related to a legal case. Legal cases receive an identification number and are counted only once no matter how
many events are associated with it. Information is not available for al sessions, particularly before 1996.
a. The IACHR uses the regional category for hearings that span multiple countries. Where countries were
named along with the tag “regional,” the hearing was counted for al entities tagged.

52 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, The Human Rights Situation of the Indigenous People in the
Am ericas, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.108, Doc. 62, October 20, 2000, at http://www.cidh.org/Indigenas/T OC.htm.
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In the appendix, Table A-5 lists publications that document various human rights issues
confronting Indigenous peoples. CRS also publishes a number of reports with country-specific
information on Indigenous peoples’ human rights issues.53

53 See CRS In Focus IF11325, Bolivia: An Overview, by Clare Ribando Seelke; CRS Report R43813, Colombia:
Background and U.S. Relations, by June S. Beittel;CRS In Focus IF11218, Ecuador: An Overview, by June S. Beittel;
CRS Report R42580, Guatem ala: Political and Socioeconom ic Conditions and U.S . Relations, by Maureen T aft -
Morales; CRS Report RL34027, Honduras: Background and U.S. Relations, by Peter J. Meyer; CRS Report R42917,
Mexico: Background and U.S. Relations, by Clare Ribando Seelke; and CRS Report R44841, Venezuela: Background
and U.S. Relations, coordinated by Clare Ribando Seelke.
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Appendix A. Data Sources and Resources Lists
Below are notes on the data sources most consulted for this report followed by resource lists
regarding Indigenous languages; socioeconomics; land, natural resources and climate change;
international organizations; and human rights.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Fundación para la Educación en Contextos
de Multilingüismo y Pluriculturalidad (the Foundation for Education in Multilingual and
Multicultural Contexts or FUNPROEIB) gathered data in 21 Latin American and Caribbean
countries in 2009 for its report in two volumes titled Atlas Sociolingüístico de Pueblos Indígenas
en América Latina. The report notes the limitations of using national censuses.54
In 2014, the United Nations’ Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
(ECLAC) collected population data from 17 Latin American countries using national censuses for
Guaranteeing Indigenous People’s Rights in Latin America: Progress in the Past Decade and
Remaining Challenges. The report notes that most countries ask people to self-identify as
Indigenous with the exception of Peru, which asks people if they speak an Indigenous language.55
In 2015, the World Bank published data from 16 countries using national censuses and household
surveys in Indigenous Latin America in the Twenty-First Century: the First Decade.56 The report
noted that the definition of Indigenous has become increasingly controversial and “underscores
the complexity of identifying Indigenous people across the region and argues that the conditions
of indigeneity vary over time and are, in some cases, context- and country-specific.”57
In 2020, ECLAC and the Development Fund for the Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the
Caribbean (Fondo para el Desarrollo de los Pueblos Indígenas de América Latina y el Caribe)
published Los pueblos indígenas de América Latina - Abya Yala y la Agenda 2030 para el
Desarrollo Sostenible: tensiones y desafíos desde una perspectiva territorial. The report’s focus
on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals notes the advances in including
Indigenous peoples’ in official statistics and lists data from 17 national censuses.
The 2021 edition of Ethnologue counted languages for each country and divided them into
Indigenous and non-Indigenous categories. Indigenous languages figures were used in Table 2 as
non-Indigenous is defined as “a language that did not originate in the country, but which is now
established there either as a result of its longstanding presence or because of institutional y
supported use and recognition.”58 Only living languages were included in the count, not
languages classified as extinct. Ethnologue’s “about” section provides details on the
methodology, language names, and status of usage.
In 2020, the International Labor Organization’s Implementing the ILO Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples Convention No. 169 Towards an Inclusive, Sustainable and Just Future presented multi-
faceted statistics on the working conditions of Indigenous peoples with a special emphasis on

54 UNICEF, 2009. pp. vii-ix.
55 ECLAC, 2014, pp. 34-36.
56 IBRD and World Bank, 2015, pp. 6, 9.
57 Ibid.
58 Gary F. Simons (editor), “Language Information,” Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Twenty-third edition, SIL
International, 2020, at https://www.ethnologue.com/about/language-info.
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gendered dimensions of labor. The report noted the “continued ‘invisibility’ of Indigenous and
tribal peoples in official data and statistics.”59 The data provided is global and regional only.
The World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab provides national data on poverty, access to services,
education and labor (last updated in July 2021). Some subnational data is also available although
not covered in this report. The World Bank notes that ethnic identity is based on self-reported
data. Statistics may vary from official statistics reported by governments as the World Bank uses
SEDLAC, “a regional data harmonization effort that increases cross-country comparability.”60
The web page of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights “Sessions by Topic: Rights of
Indigenous Peoples” provides detailed information on hearings and court cases related to
Indigenous peoples’ rights.61
For each table below, sources are listed in reverse chronological order with the year in
parentheses following the title. Multiple sources from the same year are listed alphabetical y as
are sources without a publication date, such as websites. Some sources are global, with a section
dedicated to Latin America.
Table A-1. Resources on Indigenous Languages in Latin America
Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Languages of the World, Twenty-
David M. Eberhard, Gary F. Simons,
World language encyclopedia with
fourth edition (2021)
and Charles D. Fennig (editors),
maps
Ethnologue
Celebrating Indigenous Languages
Google Earth
Interactive global website
(2019)
International Year of Indigenous
United Nations
Website with global map, summary
Languages (2019)
report and more
Atlas Sociolingüístico de Pueblos
UNICEF and FUNPROEIB Andes
Regional report in Spanish only
Indígenas en América Latina,
Volúmen I and Volúmen II (2009)
Source: Compiled by CRS.
Table A-2. Resources on Indigenous Socioeconomics
Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Linking Indigenous Communities
Organization for Economic
Report on OECD member
with Regional Development (2019)
Cooperation and Development
countries including Chile and
Mexico with some information on
non-member countries
State of the world’s Indigenous
United Nations
Global report with a chapter on
peoples: Education, 3rd volume
Latin America and the Caribbean
(2017)
Indigenous Latin America in the
International Bank for
Regional report covers statistical
twenty-first century: the first
Reconstruction and Development
numbers, migration, development,
decade (2015)
and the World Bank
poverty, and education

59 ILO, 2020, p. 44.
60 World Bank’s LAC Equity Lab, “Overview,” accessed July 27, 2021, at
https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/lac-equity-lab1
61 Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, “Sessions by T opic: Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” accessed July 27,
2021, at https://www.oas.org/es/cidh/audiencias/T opicsList.aspx?Lang=en&T opic=17
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
State of the world´s Indigenous
United Nations
Global report with a chapter on
people: Indigenous people´s access
Latin America and the Caribbean
to health services, 2nd volume
(2015)
Indigenous Peoples
U.S. Agency for International
Website with policy, blog, and
Development
more
LAC Equity Lab: A Platform for
World Bank
Regional economic data and maps
Poverty and Inequality Analysis
Source: Compiled by CRS.
Table A-3. Resources on Indigenous Land, Natural Resources, and Climate Change in
Latin America
Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Amazon Assessment Report 2021
Science Panel for the Amazon
Global report
(2021)
Forest governance by indigenous
United Nations Food and
Regional report
and tribal peoples. An opportunity
Agriculture Organization and the
for climate action in Latin America
Fund for the Development of the
and the Caribbean (2021)
Indigenous Peoples of Latina
America and the Caribbean
State of the World´s Indigenous
United Nations
Global report
Peoples: Rights to Lands,
Territories and Resources, 5th
volume (2021)
Environmental Governance
Inter-American Development Bank
Regional report
Indicators for Latin America and the and World Justice Project
Caribbean (2020)
Undermining Rights: Indigenous
World Resources Institute
Regional report
Lands and Mining in the Amazon
(2020)
Authorized to Steal: Organized
Center for International
Regional report covers government
Crime Networks Launder Il egal
Environmental Law
oversight, laundering, supply chains
Timber from the Peruvian Amazon
and recommendations
(2019)
Blood Gold in the Brazilian Rain
Jon Lee Anderson, The New
Regional long article
Forest (2019)
Yorker
Climate Change and Land: an IPCC
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Global report
Special Report on climate change,
Change
desertification, land degradation,
sustainable land management, food
security, and greenhouse gas fluxes
in terrestrial ecosystems (2019)
Global Assessment Report on
Intergovernmental Science-Policy
Global report with discussion of
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Platform on Biodiversity and
Indigenous peoples integrated
(2019)
Ecosystem Services
throughout
Global Report on the Situation of
Joji Carino, Loreto Tamayo,
Global report with a section on
Lands, Territories and Resources of
Indigenous Peoples Major Group
Latin America and the Caribbean
Indigenous Peoples (2019)
for Sustainable Development
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Rainforest Mafias: How Violence
Human Rights Watch
Report on Brazilian public and
and Impunity Fuel Deforestation in
private actors, climate change and
Brazil’s Amazon (2019)
public policy
Situation of Human Rights of the
Inter-American Commission on
Regional report examines threats to
Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of
Human Rights
Indigenous peoples, chal enges to
the Pan-Amazon Region (2019)
their rights and recommendations
At a Crossroads: Consequential
Rights and Resources Initiative
Global report
Trends in Recognition of
Community-Based Forest Tenure
from 2002-2017 (2018)
Cornered by Protected
Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Janis Alcorn,
Website with global resources
Areas(2018)
and Augusta Molnar
including report with case studies of
Panama and Peru
Looted Amazon (2018)
Infoamazonia and Amazon
Regional report covering mercury,
Georeferenced Socio-
protected areas, Indigenous
Environmental Information
territories and conflicts
Network
Who Owns the World’s Land? A
Rights and Resources Initiative
Global report with regional and
global baseline of formal y
country statistics
recognized indigenous and
community land rights (2015)
Amazonía Socioambiental
Amazon Geo-Referenced Socio-
Website with maps about the
Environmental Information
Amazon’s protected areas,
Network, a consortium of civil
Indigenous territories, deforestation
society organizations from several
and more (English, Spanish,
countries
Portuguese)
EcoCrime Data
Igarapé Institute and InSight Crime
Mapping tool for environmental
crime in the Amazon including
deforestation, il egal mining, and
cattle, soy, and oil activity
Environmental Justice Atlas
Autonomous University of
Global map with information about
Barcelona’s Institute of
level of conflict, communities,
Environmental Science and
commodities, companies, and
Technology
governmental agencies involved,
and reference links
Indigenous peoples and food
FAO Regional Office for Latin
Website links to additional regional
security in Latin America and the
America and the Caribbean
documents
Caribbean
International Indigenous Peoples’
United Nations
Website for global caucus of
Forum on Climate Change
Indigenous peoples participating in
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
Landmark Map
World Resources Institute,
Global maps, data, country profiles
International Land Coalition and
others
Source: Compiled by CRS.
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Table A-4. Resources on International Organizations and Indigenous Peoples in Latin
America
Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Implementing the ILO Indigenous
International Labor Organization
Global report on income and
and Tribal Peoples Convention No.
employment with regional statistics
169 Towards an inclusive,
and a focus on gender differences
sustainable and just future (2020)
State of the world´s Indigenous
United Nations
Global report covers Declaration
peoples: Implementing the United
implementation, official statistics,
Nations Declaration on the Rights
chal enges and priorities
of Indigenous Peoples, 4th volume
(2019)
Indigenous Peoples and Local
World Intel ectual Property
Website provides access to global
Communities Portal
Organization
publications and events
Indigenous Peoples
Organization of American States
Website provides access to the
Rapporteurship on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples of the Inter-
American Commission on Human
Rights, Summits of the Americas,
special regional projects and more
Indigenous and tribal peoples
International Labor Organization
Website provides access to global
projects, publications and
supervision of conventions
Indigenous Peoples
United Nations’ Department of
Website provides access to the
Economic and Social Affairs
global Permanent Forum on
Indigenous Issues, the World
Conference on Indigenous Peoples,
expert group meetings, the Special
Rapporteur on the rights of
Indigenous peoples and more
Source: Compiled by CRS.
Table A-5. Resources on Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights in Latin America
Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Front Line Defenders Global
Front Line Defenders
Global report about physical, digital,
Analysis 2020 (2021)
legal and social attacks against
human rights defenders
Annual Report 2020/21: The State
Amnesty International
Global report, see “Americas
of the World’s Human Rights
Regional Overview”
Human Rights in the Americas
Amnesty International
Regional report with subsection on
Annual Report 2019 (2020)
Indigenous peoples for each
country
The Indigenous World 2021
International Work Group for
Annual global reports since 1986
Indigenous Affairs
about developments affecting
Indigenous peoples, organized by
country
Indigenous Women and Their
Inter-American Commission on
Regional report with hearings,
Human Rights in the Americas
Human Rights
cases, thematic and country reports
(2017)
that document violations of the
human rights of Indigenous women
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Title (publication year)
Author
Resource Type
Guaranteeing Indigenous people’s
United Nations Economic
Regional report covers
rights in Latin America: Progress in
Commission for Latin America and
sociopolitical context, territorial
the past decade and remaining
the Caribbean
rights, and rights to wel -being and
chal enges (2014)
information
Business, Civic Freedoms & Human
Business & Human Rights Resource
Global database of attacks on
Rights Defenders Portal
Centre
human rights defenders from 2015
to present, which specifies
Indigenous victims
Country Reports on Human Rights
U.S. State Department
Annual global reports cover each
Practices
country with a section
“Discrimination, Societal Abuses,
and Trafficking in Persons” that
includes Indigenous peoples
Indigenous Navigator
Community-generated data, website Website and global database
supported by the European Union
Source: Compiled by CRS.
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link to page 34 Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Appendix B. National Agencies of Indigenous
Affairs
Table B-1. Principal National Agencies Overseeing Indigenous Affairs
Country
Parent Agency
Indigenous Affairs Agency
Argentina
Ministerio de Justicia y Derechos
Instituto Nacional de Asuntos
Humanos, Secretaría de Derechos
Indígenas
Humanos
Bolivia

Ministerio de Culturas,
Descolonización y
Despatriarcalización
Brazil
Ministério da Justiça e Segurança
Fundação Nacional do Índio
Pública
Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária
e Abastecimento
Chile
Ministerio de Desarrol o Social y
Corporación Nacional de
Familia
Desarrol o Indígena
Colombia
Ministerio del Interior
Dirección de Asuntos Indígenas,
ROM y Minorías
Costa Rica

Comisión Nacional de Asuntos
Indígenas
Ecuador

Consejo Nacional para la Igualdad
de Pueblos y Nacionalidades
El Salvador
Ministerio de Culturaa
Dirección General de
Multiculturalidad
Guatemala
Ministerio Público
Secretaría de Pueblos
IndígenasError! Reference
source not found.
Guyana

Ministry of Amerindian Affairs
Honduras
Secretaría de Desarrol o e Inclusión
Dirección de Pueblos Indígenas y
Social
Afrohondureños
Mexico
Secretaría de Cultura
Instituto Nacional de los Pueblos
Indígenas
Instituto Nacional de Lenguas
Indígenas
Nicaragua
Asamblea Nacional
Comisión de Asuntos de los
Pueblos Originarios,
Afrodescendientes y Regímenes
Autonómicos
Comisión Nacional de Demarcación
y Titulación
Panama
Ministerio de Gobierno y Justicia
Viceministerio de Asuntos Indígenas
Ministerio de Salud
Dirección de Asuntos Sanitarios
Indígenas
Paraguay
Presidencia de la República
Instituto Paraguayo del Indígena
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Country
Parent Agency
Indigenous Affairs Agency
Peru
Ministerio de Salud
Dirección de Pueblos Indígenas u
Ministerio de Cultura
Originarios
Base de datos de Pueblos Indígenas
u Originarios
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Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Statistical Information

Uruguay
Ministerio del Interior
Área Étnico Racial (“Salir de la
invisibilidad”)
Venezuela

Ministerio del Poder Popular para
los Pueblos Indígenas
Source: Compiled by CRS.
a. The Ministry of Culture mentions Indigenous peoples only in its list of responsibilities “Ejercer la rectoría de
los procesos relacionados con el desarrol o socio cultural de los pueblos indígenas.”
b. Found under the tab “Administrativo” towards the bottom of the webpage.

Author Information

Carla Y. Davis-Castro

Research Librarian

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Congressional Research Service
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