COTE D’IVOIRE Context and existing response There is strong momentum towards resolving statelessness in Cote d’Ivoire, as demonstrated by the country’s commitment under the Abidjan Declaration of Ministers of ECOWAS Member States on Eradication of Statelessness in 2015, the accession to the UN statelessness conventions in 2013, and establishment of a declaration procedure in which individuals with long-term residency in the country, including stateless people, could acquire Ivorian nationality. The procedure was in place from April 2014 to January 2016. UNHCR is financially and technically supporting the Ministry of Interior to boost its capacity to process the applications, and has also partnered with a legal aid NGO to follow up on cases that were rejected in the first instance or put on hold due to inadequate supporting documents. Over 120,000 applications were received, and as of mid-2016, approximately 5,000 stateless people were granted Ivorian nationality. As the processing of the applications is ongoing, tens of thousands of stateless people are expected to acquire Ivorian nationality by the end of 2017. UNHCR also continues to advocate for reform of the nationality law to bring it into compliance with the statelessness conventions, and for the establishment of mechanism to allow stateless people who could not benefit from the declaration procedure to acquire nationality. In addition, UNHCR supports birth registration activities to help prevent statelessness. Resources are essential to ensuring existing momentum is fully capitalized on, and an expanded response implemented where possible. Strategy and partnerships The Government of Côte d’Ivoire has committed to resolving statelessness in the country, and UNHCR is supporting its efforts through capacity building, technical assistance, and coordination of the various government actors as well as civil society. Ending statelessness in the country by 2024 is a realistic goal and can be achieved through nationality law reform, provision of legal aid, improved access to documentation, awareness-raising, and improved birth registration and administrative practices in the civil status system. The strategy relies on the increased capacity of and coordination between various actors at government, UN and civil society levels. In addition to continued partnerships with the main government partners—the Ministry of Justice and the Service d’Aide et d’Assistance aux Réfugiés et Apatrides (Assistance Service for Refugee and Stateless of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs/SAARA)—UNHCR will continue expanding its strategic partnerships with other government actors—notably the Human Rights and Public Liberties Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the National Human Rights Commission—and has established new legal aid and communications and awareness-raising partnerships with NGOs. UNFPA, UNESCO and UNICEF are the key UN actors with which UNHCR will coordinate activities, including through the country-level UNDAF plan, which includes civil registry reform and access to documentation as priorities until 2020. UNHCR will also continue to support an NGO network on statelessness. Vision for 2019    Tens of thousands of individuals have acquired Ivorian nationality. Legal pathway to nationality available to the majority of stateless people in the country. Nationality law reformed, providing for full safeguards against new cases of statelessness. 8