Honouring Indigenous Midwives: Safeguarding Life and Well-Being
Did you know Indigenous Peoples make up less than 6% of the global population, but they represent at least 15% of the extremely poor? Indigenous Peoples' territories encompass 28% of the surface of the globe and contain 11% of the world’s forests. They are guardians of most of the world’s remaining biodiversity. Indigenous Peoples have always been marginalized. The United Nations (UN) estimates that there are an estimated 476 million Indigenous Peoples in the world living across 90 countries. They make up less than 6 per cent of the world's population, but account for at least 15 per cent of the poorest. They speak an overwhelming majority of the world’s estimated 7,000 languages and represent 5,000 different cultures. The major Indigenous peoples in the Caribbean before European contact included the Tainos who inhabited the Greater Antilles (which included Jamaica) and Bahamas, including regional branches like the Lucayans), the Kalinago or Island Caribs (of the Lesser Anti...