EVALUATION OF UNHCR-LED INITIATIVES TO END STATELESSNESS – FINAL REPORT – VOLUME I competing priorities and emergencies (with COVID-19 frequently cited). In a few contexts sub-national attitudes about citizenship and belonging within modern nation states, linked to the legacy of colonialism and shifting borders, affected attitudes of populations about the value of citizenship, including among stateless populations and those of undetermined nationality. 113. Protection Officers responding to the survey most frequently cited political sensitivity and lack of awareness as hindrances to government progress. Lack of technical capacity was the most frequently cited hindrance to progress by Protection Officers in Africa. The value and challenges of statelessness data Finding 10: The lack of reliable data on stateless populations remains a critical hindering factor to preventing and resolving statelessness. Many UNHCR operations have invested in statelessness mapping studies to fill gaps in official data sources. Augmenting official data collection can support building awareness and understanding of statelessness, but can be an expensive shortterm solution for a systemic problem. While slower, UNHCR’s work to develop better standards for statelessness data gathering and statistical methods for estimating stateless populations offer greater potential for sustainable solutions to data gaps. 114. One of the key prerequisites to having the intended impact on people’s lives is to understand the scope of the problem and ensure reliable data on stateless populations, as included in GAP Action 10. Key informants repeatedly raised data gaps and challenges in improving the reliability and quality of data as one of the major challenges for UNHCR’s work on statelessness. A lack of data can limit UNHCR’s ability to communicate about statelessness, whereas alternatively good data can “open eyes and doors”. 115. As of 2019, less than half of all countries provide any data regarding stateless persons in their territory and large gaps exist in data on suspected stateless populations.71 The number of countries reporting on stateless populations increased between 2010 and 2014 when the Campaign was launched, from 65 to 77, but has since fluctuated, with 76 countries reporting in 2019.72 An additional 22 countries had known stateless populations but no data as of 2019. 73 116. Whether through UNHCR facilitated mapping studies or inclusion in official government censuses, stakeholders noted two persistent challenges with the completeness of related statelessness statistics. The first is that some persons of concern may not be aware that they are stateless or at risk of statelessness, and thus would not be counted. The second is the fear of persecution and reprisal among stateless populations if they report their status. "Any initiative to support the campaign against statelessness must be based on the presence of stateless persons in a given state or region. The prerequisite for such initiatives is the identification of stateless people, in its qualitative and quantitative dimensions."– Survey respondent “I think that [data] is an entrenched problem in terms of figures on stateless issues. We always give approximations on figures. Like with everything else, figures are an eye-opener. Statistics bring the seriousness of the problem home.” – Key informant interview 117. Another challenge is the lack of a legal definition of “at-risk of statelessness” and varying interpretations within UNHCR. UNHCR does not globally track this ambiguous category, though many country operations focus substantial efforts to identify and assist such populations, and the risk of statelessness is often reduced through UNHCR status determination and documentation assistance efforts in mixed migration contexts. Identifying in situ stateless populations can also be complicated by the cost and timeconsuming nature of instating stateless determination procedures by a government. 118. From 2012-2019, UNHCR invested just under USD 23 million for activities under the objective of improving identification of statelessness, with expenditures in 51 of its offices and operations. Forty-six percent of these expenditures were linked with five offices and operations including the U.S. MultiCountry Office, Cote d’Ivoire, Myanmar, Pakistan, and the Regional Office in Sarajevo. The quality and consistency of UNHCR exercises to gather data on stateless populations remains a challenge. According to headquarters key informants and documents the results of these efforts have often remained unpublished due to methodological issues or sensitivity about releasing results. A UNHCR paper on Statistical Reporting on Statelessness 74 was issued in 2019 providing an in-depth analysis of the challenges with data gathering, including UNHCR efforts to augment government sources. In 2019 an UNHCR, Global Trends – Forced Displacement, 2019. Ibid. Ibid. 74 UNHCR, “UNHCR Statistical Reporting on Statelessness”, UNHCR Statistical Technical Series: 2019/1 71 72 73 36 UNHCR / May, 2021