UNHCR STATISTICS TECHNICAL SERIES: 2019/1 stateless population, one de facto stateless population, four combinations of undetermined and de facto stateless populations, and one combination of undetermined and de jure stateless populations. UNHCR has the most comprehensive information on its own figures, but a key issue lies in the lack of comprehensive handbook on reporting standards and best practices aimed for data collection and coordination. Information on measuring stateless populations is spread out across several different documents, including the UNHCR Handbook for Registration,8 2014 Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons9, and 2011 Guidance Document on Measuring Statelessness.10 While the first focuses on refugees, the second does not prioritize delineating statistical best practices and the third provides guidance on research design for projects but does not address the need for streamlining coordination and reporting across countries. The lack of widespread and accessible information on UNHCR’s data best practices and priorities leads to unclear standards and coordination. UNHCR registration efforts correspond to heterogeneous enumerated populations with little methodological elaboration in databases. These registration efforts do not always allow for demographic disaggregation, and significant changes in the figures from year to year are not always explained. Some countries offices provide demographic disaggregation but no explanations for changes in reported populations. Others lack disaggregation despite improvements in registration efforts and data quality. UNHCR surveys are more targeted but sometimes ambiguously documented and lack accessible information on earlier figures. Where populations are difficult to enumerate, UNHCR estimates of undetermined populations are established in collaboration with stateless communities or NGOs. Information is not available on the historical usability and methodological background of many of these estimates. Although challenges to updating these figures create data gaps spanning several years amid inconsistent reporting timelines, countries that have cited such estimates typically move onto methodologies allowing for more frequent updates where political will and capacity allows. Challenges associated with the lack of organized information are exacerbated by conceptual ambiguities surrounding stateless and undetermined populations. UNHCR figures are particularly unclear regarding how the latter is defined. Whereas some countries cite “undetermined” populations on the basis of stateless persons measured with ambiguous methodology, others include persons or groups at risk of statelessness. Others still define it as those of unknown nationality. However, most UNHCR reporting does not provide additional description when citing undetermined populations. Governments Amid coordination issues and information challenges similar to the ones described for UNHCR figures, government reporting tends to apply to a narrower set of estimation methods focused on minimising false positives of 8 Largely directed towards refugees and asylum seekers; source: https://www.unhcr.org/publications/operations/4a278ea1d/unhcr-handbook-registrationprovisional-release-september-2003-complete.html 9 Outlines some procedures; source: https://www.unhcr.org/dach/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2017/04/CH-UNHCR_Handbook-on-Protection-of-StatelessPersons.pdf 10 4 https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/4f6887672.pdf UNHCR / October, 2019