nationality of the child, and some children of Ivorians born in Guinea had been issued with a birth certificate stating that the child was Guinean – the default option if the parent does not state otherwise.99 Commendably, the government in Côte d’Ivoire itself had instituted a process to waive, until 31 July 2014, the normal legal time limits for registration of births and deaths that occurred between 20 September 2002 and 31 July 2011 in the central, north, and west zones of the country; and those births and deaths that occurred between 30 November 2010 and 31 July 2011 in the rest of the territory.100 3.2. Systems for proof of nationality In the context where many people are undocumented, access to definitive proof of nationality for those whose status is in doubt becomes more important. In most of the civil law countries in West Africa, it is assumed by many, perhaps most, people that this is provided by the system of national identity cards, which have been obligatory for adults since the 1960s. A national ID card will usually indicate nationality as one of the pieces of information shown on the face of the card, and it will be accepted as proof of nationality by virtually every institution. Identity card systems are also being introduced in the Commonwealth countries as well as in Liberia. Given that identity card applications are usually vetted in the first instance by quite low-ranking civil servants, this gives the power to determine someone’s right to proof of nationality – for practical if not legal purposes – to a person who is in no way trained in nationality law. Although complaints mechanisms may theoretically exist within the identity card management system for those whose applications are wrongfully rejected, they are usually quite inaccessible unless the person is connected or has some legal assistance. At the same time, a large number of people may “pass” as nationals who are not entitled to do so. However, government authorities are clear that holding an identity card is not proof of nationality, even in those countries where it is mandatory only for nationals; and not even in the civil law countries do all citizens carry such a card — in Guinea, for example, coverage is estimated at only around 20 percent.101 In the civil law countries definitive proof of nationality is rather provided by a certificate of nationality issued by a tribunal, a process provided for in all the nationality codes.102 The delegation of this authority to decide if someone is a national to the courts provides both in principle and in fact some protection against arbitrary decision-making. A person whose nationality is seen as being in doubt by the personnel responsible for ID card management will be referred to the tribunal for adjudication on the case. In addition, the possibility of obtaining a nationality certificate means that there is a 99 Interviews Conakry, June 2014. Article 1 de l’ordonnance n° 2011-258 du 28 septembre 2011 relative à l'enregistrement des naissances et des décès survenus durant la crise : « Les naissances et les décès survenus pendant la période allant du 20 septembre 2002 au 31 juillet 2011, dans les ex-zones Centre-Nord -Ouest, et du 30 novembre 2010 au 31 juillet 2011, sur le reste du territoire national, pourront être déclarés, nonobstant l'expiration des délais légaux ». Article 2 of this ordinance stated that the exceptional measures would end on 31 July 2012. Loi n°2013-35 du 25 janvier 2013 extended this period to 31 July 2014. See also Mirna Adjami, Statelessness and Nationality in Côte d’Ivoire, UNHCR, forthcoming.. 101 Jaap van der Straaten, Towards Universal Birth Registration in Guinea: Analysis and recommendations for civil registration reform in Guinea for Government and UNICEF, Civil Registration Centre for Development—CRC4D, December 2013. 102 A certificate of nationality is also envisaged in international law: see the International Commission on Civil Status Convention No.28 on the Issue of a Certificate of Nationality, 1999. 100 35