Recommendations • The underlying causes of exclusion must also be resolved if disproportionate levels of poverty among stateless people are to be addressed on a long-term basis. If a person without the correct identity credential seeks to access public services on behalf of themselves or a child, this should be seen as an opportunity not for refusing services to which they otherwise appear to be entitled, but rather to resolve the lack of registration into the system. • Development programming for the integration of stateless populations should include support for initiatives to prevent and reduce statelessness through the recognition of nationality, where a person appears to be entitled but lacks the required documentary evidence, or for grant of nationality to stateless persons, especially where governments have adopted special initiatives to facilitate acquisition of nationality. Mobilize universal birth registration as a tool to prevent statelessness and expand access to registration of other civil status events The achievement of SDG Target 16.9 – to provide legal identity to all, including birth registration – will make a significant contribution to ending statelessness. Birth registration is critical to secure a child’s right to nationality, whether of the country of origin of either of the child’s parents, or of the country of the child’s birth. Development programming to ensure universal birth registration therefore plays an important role in preventing statelessness. Registration of adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths may all be necessary to secure a person’s right to nationality, requiring support for access to civil registration services generally. • Development initiatives should support the achievement of universal birth registration for all children born in the country, irrespective of the legal status, nationality or statelessness of their parents. • Where a birth has not been registered within the usual time limits, late registration should be facilitated, including for those who are now adults. • Legal and policy frameworks for birth registration should establish procedures for alternative forms of proof of identity for parents who are unable to produce the generally required supporting documents for a birth to be registered. • Development actors should pay particular attention to support for birth registration in challenging contexts (such in areas affected by conflict or with very low levels of existing registration), including for the children of parents who are stateless or have no documented nationality, or who are irregular migrants, refugees or forcibly displaced. • Development initiatives should also support the strengthening of civil registration more generally, including measures to ensure access to registration of adoptions (and other arrangements where a parent-child relationship is established), marriages, and deaths, for those who lack the generally required supporting documents. • Civil registration procedures should include a referral mechanism for persons whose nationality or legal identity is doubtful, first to administrative review, and then to an independent entity with the authority to resolve the situation, as well as ensuring access to the competent courts. Support the resolution of statelessness within rule of law initiatives and when introducing new ID systems New identification systems offer opportunities to resolve statelessness for affected individuals, but also run the risk of entrenching the existing exclusion of stateless persons. For this reason, the “do no harm” principle is particularly relevant. All legal identity initiatives should be assessed and adapted to mitigate these risks and incorporate measures to resolve the status of those whose nationality is not clear. They should also ensure the involvement and consultation of stateless populations. • Primary and secondary legislation should establish transparent and rights-respecting rules and procedures for the determination of nationality status (or statelessness). 65