Nationality and Cases of Statelessness in the Middle East and North Africa procedural problems. For instance, they may be aware that a child born to a female national is entitled to nationality if the child’s father is stateless, but not know how to or have a procedure for establishing this statelessness, such that this safeguard is not invoked. The authorities can also be aware of the operation of the law, but due to disinterest, discriminatory attitudes or corrupt practices, the law is nevertheless applied arbitrarily and decisions are taken which are at odds with the letter of the law. Furthermore, the law may – as described above – grant the authorities a certain margin of discretion with regards to the interpretation and application of its terms, which can also serve to make state practice diverse and unpredictable. In sum, given these and other potential stumbling blocks, there can often be gaps between law and practice. This may be to the benefit of people who would otherwise be stateless – for instance where provisions for loss of nationality, such as in the event of long-term residence abroad, are ignored and those who would be affected according to the letter of the law actually continue to be treated as nationals. Equally, state practice may aggravate problems of statelessness where the law in question should provide protection and guarantee the right to a nationality but this is not what happens on the ground. While this research was not comprehensive enough to offer a full picture of state practice with regard to nationality 146