The 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons defines a “stateless person” as a person whom no state considers to be a national under the operation of its law (Article 1(1)). UNHCR Guidelines adopted in 2012 elaborate that deciding if a person is stateless is a “mixed question of fact and law”, so that “Where the competent authorities treat an individual as a non-national even though he or she would appear to meet the criteria for automatic acquisition of nationality under the operation of a country’s laws, it is their position rather than the letter of the law that is determinative in concluding that a State does not consider such an individual as a national”.
The international norm that statelessness is to be avoided has been steadily strengthened in the international and African human rights regimes. In the African system, the General Comment No.2 adopted by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child emphasises these protections.
Among the countries in Africa where UNHCR recognises that there are major populations at risk of statelessness are Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, South Africa, Sudan and Zimbabwe. In Côte d’Ivoire and DRC the failure to recognise the nationality of large populations belonging to particular ethnic groups has been one of the main causes of conflict in those countries.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has heard complaints in several cases where people have been rendered stateless by individual and arbitrary decisions to deprive them of their nationality. Most cases, of course, never reach the national courts, still less a hearing by the African Commission.
Statelessness and lack of recognition of nationality have a devastating effect on respect for other rights. Without proof that a person is a national of the country where they live – or of any other country – a person may be unable to work, to access health care and education, to hold secure rights to land and other property, or to enforce any of these claims in court.
Joint Submission to the Human Rights Council at the 51st Session of the Universal Periodic Review 4th Cycle Apr-May 2026 Association des femmes chefs de Famille (AFCF), Equality Now, the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights and the Institute on […]
A former South Sudanese lawmaker has called on the government to restore her nationality documents, months after the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights ruled that she was arbitrarily deprived of her South Sudanese citizenship and ordered the state […]
Children from the stateless Rundi community in Kwale County continue to be denied equal access to education due to the lack of legal identification documents, human rights groups have warned. For more than 15 years, the Rundi have sought state […]
By Shaban Omar @Peopledailyke It is a new year, but for Esther Butui Ndambara from Kwale County, there is little to celebrate. For all her 42 years, Ndambara born and raised in Kenya and belonging to the Rundi community, she […]
By Mayeni Jones Many people may take their birth certificate, or similar official papers, for granted – hidden in a drawer and rarely seeing the light of day – but for those without one, it can lead to a shadow […]
The recent debate in The National Assembly over the plight of Ghana Town residents in Brufut exposes a long-standing injustice that The Gambia can no longer ignore. For decades, generations born and raised in Ghana Town have lived without citizenship, […]
By : Jankey Ceesay The National Assembly yesterday debated over the plight of stateless individuals residing in Ghana Town, Brufut. The matter was brought to the floor by Honorable Alhagie Babou Ceesay, Member for Sabach Sanjal, who urged the House […]
By: Fatou Krubally The National Assembly on Monday held an intense debate after Hon. Alhagie Babou Ceesay, Member for Sabach Sanjal, raised a Matter of the Day drawing attention to the decades-long statelessness affecting residents of Ghana Town in Brufut. […]
Bishop Kortu K. Brown, from the Apostolic Pentecostal Church and Church Aid, Inc., in Liberia reflects below on why ending statelessness is the responsibility of churches, and some actions they can take in that direction. Through Church Aid, Inc., and […]
By David Wafula The Kenyan National Assembly has pledged full support for the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Bill after hearing harrowing stories from residents in Kinondo, Kwale County, who have been living without national identification documents. During a recent engagement, […]
Cairo, Egypt, 27 November 2025 – The Analysis and Outreach Hub of the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict (OSRSG CAAC) in Doha, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in […]
The Continental Consultation Meeting, organized in collaboration with UNHCR, commenced today in Pretoria. This two-day event aims to engage a diverse group of stakeholders, including African Union organs, regional economic and development communities, experts on nationality, and civil society organizations […]