ACQUISITION OF CITIZENSHIP CERTIFICATE IN NEPAL ESTIMATION AND PROJECTION PROJECTION OF PEOPLE WITHOUT CITIZENSHIP CERTIFICATES With the intent to build on to the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are being adopted by the United Nations (UN). Among the goals of SDG, Goal 16 reads “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”. Target 16.9 further states “By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration”. Citizenship certificate is the primary document that provides legal identity to individuals in Nepal. This certificate is also essential to acquire the birth registration certificate of the child. Thus, absence of citizenship certificate would result in the absence of legal identity of a person. With a significant proportion of the population of Nepal without citizenship certificates and the fact that the special efforts of the government are not regular, the number can be presumed to increase. Not addressing this issue would not only jeopardize the rights of these people but will also make them devoid of any kind of legal identity. If the magnitude of the problem can be projected beforehand, proper measures can be taken to address the issue at the right time itself. The projection study thus aims to understand the gravity of the problem in the subsequent years and help recommend measures to mitigate those problems. 13