Finding four: applicants lack adequate information on the procedures for issuance of ID cards and they experience bureaucratic delays Key recommendations are that: (h)Steps must be taken to expedite issuance of identity documents for all Kenyans. The registration process should be decentralised to the province rather than remaining only at the national level. (i)The Government should stipulate and communicate the time within which such documents will be processed. Undue delays should be communicated to applicants. (j)Awareness-raising on application, replacement and alteration procedures for identity documents should be undertaken both by the government and by civil society organisations. Finding five: the number of stateless persons in Kenya is unclear and this should be determined Key recommendations are that: (k)Data on statelessness should be included in future national census. In the meantime, targeted surveys should also be explored to determine the number of stateless persons and persons at risk of statelessness in Kenya. Closer cooperation between the Government, United Nations agencies and civil society actors should be cultivated to identify the scope of statelessness in the country. Affected communities should be specifically identified and appropriate interventions tailored. Finding six: There is need for sensitization that stateless persons and those at risk of statelessness are entitled to rights and an environment that confirms their nationality Key recommendations in this regard are that: (l)The positive contributions which stateless persons or those at risk of state lessness provide to nation-building should be highlighted particularly by non-state actors. Awareness-raising in this regard should be undertaken. (m)The issue of statelessness as a humanitarian concern as well as a human rights issue should be acknowledged and profiled by KNCHR as well as by United Nations mandate holders, such as the UNHCR. These organizations should work towards ensuring sound assessments that would advance protection of the human rights of stateless persons and persons at risk of statelessness. Such assessments should inform the agencies’ programmes to enhance advocacy efforts on behalf of stateless persons and those at risk of statelessness, especially when it comes to their ability to access services. New partnerships should be explored and formed with the range of actors and government service providers to bridge any gaps of a humanitarian nature that may be affecting stateless persons and those at risk of statelessness. Being a stateless person is like having no hands. Interview with Aissatou, North Eastern Province, 17 September 2009. (To preserve anonymity, pseudonyms are used in this work.) 12 2 OUT OF THE SHADOWS TOWARDS ENSURING THE RIGHTS OF STATELESS PERSONS AND PERSONS AT RISK OF STATELESSNESS IN KENYA