Overview Overall Strategy TO ASSIST COUNTRIES ACHIEVE THE GOALS of this Global Action Plan, UNHCR and partners will: • • • • • • • • 3 6 Identify factors which may contribute to new cases of statelessness or which prevent resolution of existing situations; Develop and implement National Action Plans to undertake relevant Actions; While the Global Action Plan focuses on the overarching goals of resolving existing situations of statelessness and preventing the emergence of new cases of statelessness, UNHCR will continue to work with relevant actors to ensure implementation of all aspects of its statelessness mandate in accordance with relevant General Assembly Resolutions and Conclusions of UNHCR’s Executive Committee, notably Conclusion No. 106 of 2006 on “Identification, Prevention and Reduction of Statelessness and Protection of Stateless Persons.”3 Convene country-level roundtable discussions with governments, civil society, other UN Agencies and stakeholders, and undertake participatory assessments with stateless communities to inform the development of National Action Plans; While some stateless people are also refugees, most are not. The Global Action Plan focuses primarily on non-refugee stateless populations but also complements UNHCR’s efforts to resolve protracted refugee situations. Provide technical advice and, where necessary, resources to support governments and stateless populations; Resources Promote the exchange of good practices in resolving statelessness; Engage with the justice sector and the legal community for a strategic use of judicial processes; Undertake sustained global awarenessraising and advocacy on statelessness, ensuring that the plight of stateless people is understood and their voices are heard; and Report on implementation of Actions every two years. EXPERIENCE HAS SHOWN that successful responses to most situations of statelessness entail low costs. However, additional resources will be required to undertake the Actions outlined in the Global Action Plan. Since 2009, UNHCR has more than tripled its expenditure on statelessness – from USD 12 million to USD 36 million in 2013. The High Commissioner has dedicated additional resources through the ‘Seeds for Solutions’ process to the most promising projects to resolve existing situations and prevent new cases of statelessness. This has boosted the capacity of six UNHCR operations by over USD 1 million during 2014. UNHCR, Conclusion on Identification, Prevention and Reduction of Statelessness and Protection of Stateless Persons, 6 October 2006, No. 106 (LVII) - 2006, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/453497302.html. For details on the full range of activities undertaken under UNHCR’s statelessness mandate, please see UNHCR Action to Address Statelessness: A Strategy Note, March 2010, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4b9e0c3d2.html. UNHCR > G LO B A L AC T I O N P L A N TO E N D S TAT E L E S S N E S S : 2 0 1 4 – 2 0 2 4