The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says that around 4.4 million people worldwide are recognized as stateless, adding that the actual figure of stateless people is significantly higher. UNHCR said being stateless had a “devastating impact” on those affected, calling for more efforts to combat this exclusion.
Not recognized as citizens of any country, stateless people are often deprived of rights and access to basic services, which marginalizes them politically and economically and makes them vulnerable to discrimination and exploitation, according to the UNHCR. “At least 4.4 million people in 95 countries are believed to be stateless or of undetermined nationality,” UNHCR said in a statement.
79 countries signatories to the two Conventions on stateless persons
“The overall figure is widely recognized to be significantly higher given the relative invisibility of stateless people in national statistics,” he said. A disproportionate number of stateless people around the world are members of minority groups, compounding the discrimination and marginalization they experience, UNHCR said. “Although statelessness has different causes, in many cases it can be resolved through simple legislative and policy changes. I call on States around the world to take immediate action and ensure that no one is left behind,” declared the head of the UNHCR, Filippo Grandi, quoted in the text.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is the latest country to have joined the Statelessness Conventions. In total, 97 countries are now parties to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and 79 to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
“The progress made in combating statelessness is positive and we commend States for taking action. But it is not enough,” said Filippo Grandi. “With the increase in forced displacement around the world, millions of people are being left on the margins (of societies), deprived of their basic human rights, including the right to participate and contribute to society. This exclusion is unfair and must be fought,” he said.