Statelessness can also result from gender inequality in nationality laws. In some nationality laws, women are not able to pass on their nationality to their children. Moreover, women may lose their nationality upon marriage. Currently, 25 states discriminate against women in their laws and practice with regard to the transmission of nationality to their children.13 2.1.3 Consequences of Statelessness The consequences of being stateless are considerable. Stateless people are among the most vulnerable in the world and often encounter many difficulties in every aspect of daily life. In practice, statelessness often results in the denial of fundamental rights, which in turn results in marginalization, causing significant social and economic hardship. Stateless persons are often at increased risk of discrimination, abuse, child labour, exploitation, trafficking and/or detention. Nationality is an individual’s basic right as it provides the legal connection between an individual and a state. Stateless persons, without nationality, are incapable of exercising their most fundamental rights. Stateless persons may often be denied access to employment, housing, education, health care and pensions. They may not be able to go to school, see a doctor, get a job, obtain a driving licence, open a bank account, own property, get married legally or register the birth of their child. Generally, stateless people are not counted or registered adequately, meaning their needs are not planned for and their existence not acknowledged. 2.2 The International and Regional Legal Framework This chapter sets out the main international and regional legal framework on statelessness. At the international level, two conventions deal specifically with statelessness: the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons14 and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.15 2.2.1 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons The 1954 Convention entered into force in 1960 and has 96 states parties. It sets the legal framework for the standard treatment of stateless persons and contains provisions regarding stateless persons’ rights and obligations pertaining to their legal status in the country of residence. Most importantly, the Convention sets out the definition of a ‘stateless person’. It requires that stateless persons have the same rights as citizens with respect to freedom of religion and education of their children. For other rights, such as the right of association, the right to employment and housing, it provides that stateless persons are to enjoy, at a minimum, the same treatment as other nonnationals. The 1954 Convention contains administrative provisions regarding the issuance of travel documents16 and identity papers17 as well as the requirement for states to facilitate the naturalisation of stateless persons.18 There is also a prohibition on the expulsion of stateless persons who are lawfully on the territory of a state party to the Convention.19 10 13 UNHCR, Background Note on Discrimination in Nationality Laws and Statelessness, 20 October 2021, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/616fda104.html UNHCR, Background Note on Gender Equality, Nationality Laws and Statelessness 2022, 4 March 2022, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/6221ec1a4.html 14 UN General Assembly, Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, 28 September 1954, United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 360, p. 117, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b3840.html (hereinafter the 1954 Convention). 15 UN General Assembly, Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, 30 August 1961, United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 989, p. 175, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b39620.html 16 Article 28, 1954 Convention. 17 Article 27, 1954 Convention. 18 Article 32, 1954 Convention. 19 Article 31, 1954 Convention. Mapping Statelessness in Ireland