On 23 April, the national human rights institutes of Indonesia (Komnas HAM) and Malaysia (SUHAKAM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to address the issue of statelessness in Sabah, Malaysia. The institutes pledged to work closely with their respective governments to address statelessness in Sabah and conduct a study on the geopolitical and historical context of the issue. The Commission on the Human Rights of the Philippines will act as an observer. On 15 May, the Philippines took steps towards acceding to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness (1961 Convention) by including this topic in the 18th Congress Legislative Agenda proposed by the Council for the Welfare of Children. On 23 May, the Council for the Welfare of Children convened a meeting with UNHCR and key government agencies to discuss collaboration and to identify steps to move forward with accession to the 1961 Convention. On 13 May, the global law firm Baker McKenzie organized a seminar on statelessness for their legal team and partners in Thailand. UNHCR and the National Human Rights Commissioner, Tuenjai Deetes (the regional finalist for Asia for the 2018 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award), briefed the participants on the statelessness situation in Thailand. On 6 and 7 June, the National Citizenship Network in Myanmar held a workshop on childhood statelessness and access to civil documentation for persons with disabilities. The workshop was facilitated by the Statelessness Network Asia Pacific and the Open Society Foundation and was attended by representatives from national and international NGOs. The workshop provided a platform to discuss strategies to reduce statelessness and improve access to civil documentation for all populations in Myanmar. The Thai National Human Rights Commissioner, Tuenjai Deetes, and UNHCR at a statelessness seminar organized by Baker McKenzie. © UNHCR 5