This article is the product of an investigation that aimed to identify the most relevant aspects of development projects in the indigenous context, mainly from the perspective of indigenous social organizations and their experts. It was based on the question: What is the situation and requirements in the formulation of projects in the current conditions of development of the indigenous population of Cauca? The research was carried out under a mixed non-experimental correlational cross-sectional approach, for the quantitative part a survey was conducted aimed at project formulators and for the qualitative part a semi-structured interview directed to experts was applied, the data was analyzed through the SPSS software and Atlas ti. respectively. As results, it was found that there is good knowledge at the conceptual level by the formulators, but that it is not enough to have the level of expertise required to formulate and evaluate public investment projects in the indigenous indigenous context, however, this situation has not It has been an impediment to the development of projects, since experts were sought to fill that conceptual and expertise gap. The use of methodologies of the National Planning Department (DNP) in Colombia is concerned, for example, a problem was found with the use of the General Adjusted Methodology (MGA), being a condition for the approval of public projects in Colombia