In search of solutions: Addressing statelessness in the Middle East and North Africa

UNHCR has examined how conditions in the Syria crisis are impeding access to nationality, or the confirmation of nationality in the form of identity documentation, along with the immediate and longer term protection concerns raised by these gaps. UNHCR has focused on how various sectors of the refugee response as well as the response to the displacement situation inside Syria can reduce and mitigate the risk of statelessness, while also improving the protection, security and dignity of those displaced.

Across the region, UNHCR, governments, civil society and communities are working to ensure all children are born with a legal identity and a nationality. Progress is especially notable for Syrian refugee children in the steps Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP) countries are taking to document and register every child born in their territory, as well as the growing number of States in the region that are reforming their nationality laws to expand the rights of women and children. To prevent and reduce statelessness, efforts are underway in countries affected by conflict to strengthen and rebuild civil registration systems and help IDPs and conflict-affected families obtain and replace civil status documentation. Despite this progress, significant challenges remain and much more needs to be done to address statelessness across the region, including with respect to deprivation of nationality.