in Africa’. The event brought together civil society organizations from across the continent to discuss their role in addressing statelessness, share advocacy strategies and lessons learned, and identify actionable steps to advance the signature, ratification, and domestication of the ACHPR Nationality Rights Protocol. In Burkina Faso, on 14 November, under the chairmanship of the Governor of the Hauts-Bassins Region, the Ministry of Territorial Administration, through the DGMEC, organized the official ceremony to commemorate the 7th African civil registration Day in Bobo-Dioulasso under the theme ‘Strengthening the links between civil registration, civil status statistics, and legal identity systems through the digital transition for strong inclusion’. The event promoted the importance of civil registration and its links to legal identity. On the sidelines of the commemoration, 5,000 birth certificates and 1,000 Burkinabe national identity cards were issued to internally displaced persons and host communities. DGMEC also announced the adoption and pilot phase of ‘Venem’, an integrated civil registration management solution developed locally to digitize and modernize Burkina Faso’s civil registry system. In Gabon, on 23 December 2024, the National Commission for Refugees, with technical support from UNHCR, organized an awareness-raising and exchange session on statelessness in Libreville. Participants included magistrates, civil registry staff, documentation officers, teachers, civil society representatives, and parliamentarians. The session aimed to develop an action plan for Gabon’s ratification of the 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions and the fulfilment of other commitments related to ending statelessness. In The Gambia, from 19 to 21 August 2024, UNHCR and the Gambia Commission for Refugees organized a high-level stakeholder meeting to monitor and implement the government’s pledges on refugee local integration and statelessness. Participants included representatives from various ministries, the National Assembly, the Immigration Department, and civil society organizations. The meeting resulted in the development of action plans for each pledge to guide government responses. On 23 August, the President of The Gambia met with the UNHCR Senegal Multi-Country Office Representative to discuss nationality matters, including the status of foundlings and other persons at risk of statelessness. The meeting led to an engagement of partners to assess the risk of statelessness among the Ghana Town population and to work with parliamentarians on legal reforms addressing existing gaps, including those in the Constitution, based on joint position notes developed with UNHCR. In Niger, a statelessness working group has been established for the Tahoua region to enhance accountability and coordination in implementing regional joint plans linked to the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the Global Plan on civil status and development. This initiative is cofacilitated by UNHCR and UNICEF. Additionally, on 10 December 2024, UNHCR provided computer equipment and supplies to civil registration and justice departments in Guidan Roumdji and Madarounfa (Maradi region), as well as the Governorate of Maradi. The support, including 22 spare toners, 3 printers, 75 birth declaration registers, and 150 birth certificate books, will enable the registration of 15,000 births and the issuance of 15,000 birth certificates. UNHCR > The Campaign to End Statelessness | October – December 2024 Update 15