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How many Indigenous Peoples live around
the world?
A) 180 million
B) 370 million
C) 520 million
Answer: B. It is estimated that there are 370 million Indigenous
peoples around the world.
Among the Indigenous peoples of the world,
levels of wealth, socio-economic status and
access to social services fall behind that of nonIndigenous peoples.
This is more of a reality in developing countries
than in developed ones.
True
False
Answer: False. The poverty and marginalisation of Indigenous peoples is not limited
to developing countries. This is also the case in developed countries like Australia and
Canada. For example: in Australia the median gross individual income for Indigenous
peoples was $278 per week compared with $473 for non-Indigenous people in 2006.
Indigenous peoples are also imprisoned at a rate 14 times higher than nonIndigenous peoples.
Indigenous peoples make up roughly 5% of
the world’s population, but 15% of people
living in poverty.
TRUE
FALSE
Answer: True. Indigenous peoples are more likely to experience poverty than nonIndigenous peoples.
Who said this?
‘What has been done cannot be undone. But
what can now be done to remedy the deeds of
yesterday must not be put off till tomorrow.’
A) Pope John
Paul II
B) Kevin Rudd
C) Mick Gooda
Answer: A. Pope John Paul II said this when he made his historic visit to Alice Springs
in 1986.
There are always fewer Indigenous peoples
in their country/region than nonIndigenous people.
TRUE
FALSE
Answer: False. Bolivia is an example of one country where there are more
Indigenous peoples than non-Indigenous peoples. Unfortunately they are still
experiencing similar disadvantages to other Indigenous populations around the
world.
There are approximately 7,000
languages spoken in the world today.
How many are estimated to be spoken
by Indigenous Peoples?
A) 1,500
B) 2,500
C) 4,000
Answer: C. It is estimated that while Indigenous peoples make up 5% of the world
population they speak more than 4000 of the 7000 languages spoken in the world
today.
What percentage of the world’s
Indigenous languages are predicted to
become extinct or threatened with
extinction by the end of the century?
A) 25%
B) 75%
C) 90%
Answer: C. Language specialists predict that up to 90% of the world’s Indigenous
languages are likely to become extinct or threatened with extinction by the end of
the century.
There are a growing number of Indigenous
peoples who are able to live in their
traditional lands.
TRUE
FALSE
Answer: False. The number of Indigenous people living on their traditional land is
decreasing.
In most cases, treaties between
Indigenous peoples and the government
of the country in which they reside have
not been respected.
TRUE
FALSE
Answer: True. Although treaties exist between most Indigenous people and the
governments of the countries in which they reside, these treaties are often disputed
either because they are thought of as unfairly negotiated, or because the treaty
rights have been breached and obligations not fulfilled.
The unemployment rate for Indigenous
people aged 15-64 in 2008 was more than
three times the unemployment rate of the
non-Indigenous population.
TRUE
FALSE
Answer: True. In 2008 16.6% of Indigenous people were unemployed compared to
5% of the civilian population.
• State of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, 2009,
http://social.un.org/index/IndigenousPeoples.aspx
• Australian Bureau of Statistics:
http://www.abs.gov.au
• Education for Justice: www.educationforjustice.org
• Richard Wainwright
• Ramadian Bachtiar

Please visit www.caritas.org.au/walkasone to
take action