January 6, 2026
At Long Last, Indigenous Territorial Entities Recognized in Colombia
In a remarkable victory for Indigenous Peoples in the Amazon, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has formalized the first eight Indigenous Territorial Entities (ETIs). Signed in December 2025, the decrees are a pathway to strengthen Indigenous Peoples’ self-determination by recognizing their political, administrative, and fiscal autonomy.
These ETIs cover more than 7 million hectares – about 15% of the Colombian Amazon.
Nia Tero is proud to have supported this process since 2019, in partnership with the GAIA Amazonas Foundation. By 2025, we were the first international funder of the Esquema Asociativo de los Territorios Indigenas del Macroterritorio de los Jaguares de Yurupari, an associative structure of ETIs comprising the Yaigojé Apaporis, Miriti Paraná, Río Tiquié, and Pirá Paraná indigenous territories. The Esquema advances the protection, defense, cultural strengthening, and physical integrity of these territories.
Photo: Scenes from the signing of decrees in Colombia that formally recognize eight Indigenous Territorial Entities. Courtesy of Gaia Amazonas.
Photo: Scenes from the signing of decrees in Colombia that formally recognize eight Indigenous Territorial Entities. Courtesy of Gaia Amazonas.
Photo: Scenes from the signing of decrees in Colombia that formally recognize eight Indigenous Territorial Entities. Courtesy of Gaia Amazonas.
Photo: Scenes from the signing of decrees in Colombia that formally recognize eight Indigenous Territorial Entities. Courtesy of Gaia Amazonas.
Photo: Scenes from the signing of decrees in Colombia that formally recognize eight Indigenous Territorial Entities. Courtesy of Gaia Amazonas.