However, shorter and mid-term solutions are available to improve the situation of affected populations and gradually chart a way to reduce and prevent statelessness in Cambodia. There has been some considerable movement in the past years. The ‘foreigner’ census, new permanent resident cards and instructions to local authorities demonstrate that the government deemed necessary more centralised, regulatory action regarding affected populations on Cambodian territory. Yet, as it stands, the PRCs do not provide any significant benefit to their holders, other than that they are required to have one to avoid penalties. This affects particularly communities of Vietnamese origin. Certain ministerial instructions seem to indicate that this is not necessarily the intention. Clarifying and effectively implementing the legal rights associated with the PRCs could provide their holders with much needed access to rights and services, including in relation to education, employment, health care and other basic services. The new CRVSID law in particular provides a tangible opportunity to make civil registration universal in Cambodia, extending its coverage to hitherto excluded stateless communities. Effective and non-discriminatory access to birth and marriage registration would go a long way to addressing selfgenerated problems associated with administrative requirements for legal status and citizenship in Cambodia. Fully universal coverage, however, will require a more systematic assessment of current inequalities in civil registration, raising awareness among and providing support to stateless communities and those at risk of statelessness, as well as building capacities and providing clear instructions 29 to local authorities, who will ultimately implement the new civil registration regime. These efforts should also be linked to promoting universal and nondiscriminatory access to public education for all children regardless of whether they have sufficient proof of identity, including ethnic Vietnamese children. Linking access to public education to the possession of a birth certificate, while simultaneously not addressing inequalities in civil registration has, in practice, excluded many children from accessing public schooling. This is further reinforced by the entrenched legacies of social exclusion and lack of awareness among poor stateless households about the benefits of education. Education for all is therefore a key ingredient to broader action on statelessness. This requires making inclusive education for all stateless children a reality and ending exclusion from education based on lack of nationality or proof of legal identity. Inaction risks perpetuating educational disadvantages and statelessness, which further contribute to intergenerational poverty. This situation in turn threatens Cambodia’s commitment to the SDGs and its own sustainable development agenda. While improvements in CRVS will be particularly useful for the next generation, including those inheriting the statelessness status from their parents, further action is required to address the predicaments of the adult stateless population. Access to (proof of) nationality alone will not overcome entrenched discrimination and social exclusion, but it is one step towards improving access to rights, opportunities and protections. Several pathways to citizenship already exist under Cambodia’s