Rationale for a Regional Toolkit on Nationality Legislation Access to a nationality provides significant benefits on both an individual and community level. Belonging is a foundation for people to thrive, reach their potential and be more secure in their families, communities and countries. Increasing inclusion, participation and belonging can strengthen local and national economies, lead to higher educational attainment and improve social cohesion and stability. People with a nationality are more easily able to obtain identity documents, access to the labour market beyond the informal sector or underground economy, are more likely to own property, move about freely and more meaningfully and directly contribute to economies and communities. The increased sense of belonging to a community which is fostered when people are able to enjoy their right to a nationality is likely to lead to an increase in stability and security within their home States.21 The Toolkit on Nationality Legislation is developed as a tool to support States that may be interested in updating elements of their nationality law. States may wish to revisit some aspects of their nationality laws due to the fact that many were originally promulgated by foreign governments, at a time when the international rules governing nationality were significantly different to the present moment. British and French legal systems had an influence on the region in the first half of the 20th Century through a mix of colonial, protectorate and mandate rule.22 The British and French norms strongly influenced the initial post-independence nationality acts of many States in the region, the central tenets of which have largely remained in place to this day. 23 Since these laws were enacted, there have been important developments in international law, which reflect an emerging consensus that all people have the right to a nationality. The disparity between some existing laws and the current international and regional legal norms provide a strong impetus for change. Additionally, social phenomena, such as globalization and conflict, have altered the conditions by which people acquire nationality. Global and regional crises threaten to leave millions of people, including children, in the margins. Conflict and the resulting large-scale displacement may put children at risk due to increased family separation, the non-functioning 9