EVALUATION OF UNHCR-LED INITIATIVES TO END STATELESSNESS – FINAL REPORT – VOLUME I internal guide75 on data collection was produced to address common issues associated with predominantly qualitative data gathering exercises. "If I was an activist on statelessness, even if I don’t have numbers, I can go to court and make a case even if it is for one person. You start a case, set a precedent and this helps.” – Key informant interview 119. The four country case studies covered by the evaluation provide examples of UNHCR’s efforts at country-level to address data gaps for statelessness as presented in Box 2. While good practices are somewhat context specific, successful and ongoing efforts to include statelessness in official government censuses in Kenya, Tajikistan (to take place in 2020 and be analyzed in 2021) and the Philippines stand out as good practices for UNHCR to replicate. The household Socio Economic Assessment (SEA) in Kenya is also a good practice as it provides more granular details on the specific needs and situation of stateless persons, which can help UNHCR discuss prioritizing their assistance visa-vis other UN partners and development actors. 120. At the HLS in October 2019, 34 States pledged to improve qualitative and quantitative data on stateless populations, 29 pledged to conduct studies and 9 more pledged to include statelessness in upcoming censuses.76 Studies to identify stateless persons have been completed in numerous countries. For example, by 2020, 22 countries in Europe had conducted dedicated mapping studies on statelessness. Progress on improving data systems has been concentrated in countries where resolving statelessness issues is more of a technical matter and there is political will at country and regional level to do so. 121. In 2019, UNHCR convened a meeting of experts to begin exploring ways of improving statelessness statistics. Two initiatives are ongoing under the work of the Joint Data Center on Forced Displacement (JDC), established by UNHCR and the World Bank. The Expert Group on Refugee and IDP Statistics (EGRIS, a sub-group of the UN Statistical Commission), comprised of national statistical officers, UN agencies and regional commissions, is charged with developing common definitions and standards for collecting statelessness statistics and is expected to develop International Recommendations on Statelessness Statistics (IROSS) in 2023.77 A separate group of inter-agency representatives from international organizations and academic experts is also working, with strong support from UNHCR, to Box 2: Examples of country operation efforts to improve data on statelessness Multiple country operations engaged through evaluation case studies have initiated some form of mapping studies. In Kenya, discrete mapping studies have been conducted over time for different stateless or atrisk populations along with strong collaboration with the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Of particular note are UNHCR’s contributions to mapping of the Makonde population in 2015; and a household listing and mapping of the Shona population in 2019, including a first of its kind Social Economic Assessment (SEA), funded by the World Bank-UNHCR Joint Data Center. These mapping studies, combined with persistent policy and public advocacy and awareness raising efforts, are partly credited with the recognition and registration of 1,500 Makonde (in 2016) and 1,670 Shona (in 2020) persons of concern. Building on a 2016 study of statelessness in Cote d'Ivoire, an extensive mapping exercise was carried out in collaboration with the National Statistics Institute in 2018-2019. The mapping engaged communitybased organizations and UN Volunteers and resulted in identification of groups of persons at risk of statelessness. The process promoted buy-in from a cross-section of government and agencies who participated in and validated the exercise. In the Philippines, a mapping exercise was conducted in 2012 and 2013 of Persons of Indonesian Descent (PID). UNHCR has engaged in ongoing advocacy efforts to include PoC in the implementation of the Philippine Identification System pursuant to Republic Act 11055 and PoC-related indicators in the Philippine census. A joint UNICEF / UNHCR position paper on civil registration and vital statistics, which includes recommendations for enhancing reporting of statistical data, was submitted and presented to key stakeholders to enhance proposed legislative measures filed in the current Philippines Congress. Some operations have also succeeded in advocating for inclusion of statelessness questions in the national census. In Tajikistan a question related to statelessness was added to the census set to take place in 2020 and 2021. UNHCR has a long-standing working relationship with the Philippines Statistics Authority. In 2017 the Philippines Statistics Authority issued guidance on reporting the births of children born abroad to Filipino parents as a means to address the risk of statelessness among children in migratory situations. 75 76 77 UNHCR, “UNHCR Reporting on Statelessness”, July 2019, Version 1.2 Ibid. Key informant interviews and UNHCR Global Trends – Forced Displacement, 2019. UNHCR / May, 2021 37