Legal advice can help States transpose international standards into national legislation.17 The key standards to prevent statelessness include:
Grant of nationality to children born in territory if they would otherwise be stateless;18
Grant of nationality to children born to a national abroad if they would otherwise be stateless;19
Presumption that foundlings are nationals;20
Providing that as a general rule, loss and deprivation of nationality should not result in statelessness;21
Providing that voluntary renunciation of nationality shall not be permitted if it results in statelessness;22
Equality between men and women with regard to acquisition, change and retention of nationality and conferral of nationality on children.23 • Improving institutional capacity to document the civil status of individuals: Where persons are at risk of statelessness due to lack of evidence of nationality, support for the development of national capacity to provide effective public administration, in particular national registration and documentation services should be offered. Particular emphasis on improving birth registration is critical in this regard. Creative approaches, such as through mobile registration units, or registering births and civil status in conjunction with other national campaigns, such as public-health inoculation drives, should be pursued. Through capacity-building and training, competent courts and administrative authorities are in a position to accurately confirm whether a person is a national, ensuring that all those who have acquired a nationality under the legislation of a State are recognized as nationals in practice. Working with the judiciary can also enhance the interpretation and application of nationality legislation in line with international standards so as to prevent statelessness. • Empowering individuals: People must be aware of their rights and related procedures on acquisition of nationality by their children, protection against loss and deprivation of nationality and access to identity and nationality documentation. Public information and education campaigns are important activities in this regard and some individuals may require legal assistance in order to avail themselves of such rights and procedures. Civil society plays a critical role, for instance, by highlighting the importance of birth registration and assisting parents to secure birth certificates for their children through 17 When doing so, it is important to note that these standards neither require a generalized grant of nationality based on birth in the territory (jus soli) nor the acceptance by States of dual/multiple nationality. 18 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, article 1, African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, article 6, American Convention on Human Rights, art. 20, European Convention on Nationality, article 6. 19 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, article 4. 20 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, article 2. 21 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, articles 7 and 8. 22 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, article 7. 23 CEDAW, rticle 9 and ICCPR articles 23(4), 24(3) and 26. - 10 -