Salta Creates Argentina’s First Ministry for Indigenous Affairs

by Matthew Corb, 11 December 2015. Tags: salta, indigenous affairs, Luis Gómez Almarás

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Luis Gómez Almarás is the new Minister for Indigenous Affairs and Community Development (Photo via Gobierno de Salta)

With the new government cycle that began yesterday, Salta became the first province in Argentina to have an indigenous affairs and community development ministry.

According to its webpage on the Salta province website, the indigenous affairs ministry will work to “implement measures to ensure the recognition and respect of cultural identities and to guarantee the possession and property of indigenous community land.”

The reelected governor of Salta, Juan Manuel Urtubey, proposed a modification to established laws surrounding the provincial ministries on the 30th November and secured the creation of the indigenous affairs ministry, which is headed by Luis Gómez Almarás.

Salta first recognised the rights of indigenous peoples and communities in its provincial constitution in 1986.

The new ministry seeks to “promote understanding in the development and implementation of mechanisms that enable both indigenous and non-indigenous people access to lands that they traditionally occupy and encourage their participation in actions surrounding the land.”

Other proposed responsibilities include encouraging community development with respect to the community’s particular cultural values, especially in rural areas and in indigenous peoples, and strengthening non-governmental agencies to support community actions.

In addition, the ministry aims to “avoid, offset, and reduce the effects nature or other natural disasters can have on the population and personal property,” and work to fulfill the basic needs of vulnerable and high-risk populations through education and governmental backing.

In the 2010 census, around 79,000 people, or 6.6% of Salta’s 1.2m population, identified itself as indigenous.