What does it mean to be stateless?
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Cate Blanchett explains statelessness
Statelessness in Central Asia
As of June 2022, around 49,230 people were known to be stateless across Central Asia. With stateless people continuously identified, the true number is believed to be higher.
A majority of stateless people in Central Asia are ex-citizens of the former Soviet Union who have not yet acquired or confirmed citizenship of the independent States. Others are born stateless or became stateless due to gaps in nationality laws, international migration, and mixed marriages.
In Central Asia, UNHCR serves:
- Stateless persons: individuals recognized and documented by the State as being without any nationality; and
- Persons with undetermined nationality: individuals who do not have proof that they possess any nationality, and have links to more than one State, or are perceived and treated by the authorities in the State of residence as possessing such.
As of July 2024
About the #IBelong Campaign to End Statelessness
Launched in November 2014, the #IBelong Campaign aims to end statelessness within ten years, by identifying and protecting stateless people, resolving existing situations of statelessness and preventing the emergence of new cases. Through legal advocacy and awareness-raising, UNHCR works with governments and partners around the globe towards achieving the Campaign goals.
The #IBelong Campaign to End Statelessness directly advances the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16.9: By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration. Ending statelessness also contributes to SDG targets relating to gender equality, education, work and health, among others.
Ensuring that no one is left behind is key to commitments made by all nations, to strive for peace and prosperity for people and the planet.
2022 Regional Statelessness Competition for Youth
If you are between 15 and 24 years old, we invite you to submit your works – from essays and research papers, to paintings, podcasts and more.
Coalition on Every Child’s Right to a Nationality
UNHCR-UNICEF Coalition on Every Child’s Right to a Nationality aims to develop, expand and strengthen international co-operation to raise awareness about and combat the hidden problem of childhood statelessness.
High-Level Segment on Statelessness
To mark the mid-point of the #IBELONG Campaign to End Statelessness, UNHCR will convene a global High-Level Segment on Statelessness as part of its Executive Committee meeting in October 2019.