STATELESSNESS AND CITIZENSHIP IN THE EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY recommendations (which may in any event contradict each other), or simply not respond. If the Minister approves the application, a further fee of US$ 3,500 is payable before citizenship is formally granted. For certain categories of person, including those who would have qualified to register for citizenship under the 1961 constitution transitional provisions and their descendants born in Tanzania, there is a facilitated naturalisation procedure with a lower fee (two instalments of one million Tanzanian shillings, or a total of approximately US$ 870), but grant of citizenship is still at the discretion of the Minister.138 Weaknesses in nationality administration  Weak civil registration systems Birth registration is the foundation for nationality administration, but three of the six EAC countries have birth registration rates of less than 50% of those under five years old, and none is higher than 85%. Older children and adults tend to have even lower rates of registration.  The vital need for due process, including both administrative and judicial review and appeal Documents attesting to nationality are ever more important for individuals to access their other rights. It is critical that decisions made by officials to deny or refuse to renew a document are subject to review and appeal not only by other officials, but also by the courts. As affirmed by the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in the Anudo decision, when a person has previously been treated as a national, including holding documents attesting nationality, the burden of proof should fall on the state to prove that the person is not entitled to hold that document.  The lack, in some countries, of a document that is conclusive proof of nationality In Burundi and Rwanda the courts have the jurisdiction to issue a certificate of nationality that is proof of that status unless overturned by another court. In Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda there is no such document for citizens from birth, meaning that citizenship may be required to be proven each time an application is made for identity documents.  Discriminatory vetting procedures can exclude legitimate applicants All states have procedures to verify a person’s entitlement to their nationality. However, where higher standards of proof are applied to certain communities – including requirements to produce documents that many cannot be expected to hold – then members of that community without connections or access to lawyers and other assistance may be excluded from recognition of nationality, even if they fulfil all the criteria in fact.  Naturalisation is only available to a very few The discretionary nature, high costs, and heavy procedural requirements attached to naturalisation means that regular naturalisation procedures is only accessible to a small elite. The exceptional programmes initiated by Kenya for stateless persons and by Tanzania for certain Burundian refugees, should be replicated for other groups whose only meaningful ties are to the country of residence.  Costs can obstruct access to nationality documentation While official fees for birth registration, identity documents and nationality certification are mostly reasonable, they can still create barriers for the poorest people. The fees charged by intermediaries who facilitate applications, transport costs, and the many hours of lost time waiting for documents to be issued put them out of reach for many more. 138 Interviews, Immigration Services Department, Dar es Salaam, 16 July 2016; most recent fees established by the Tanzania Citizenship (Amendments) Regulations G.N. 427 of 13 October 2017; see also the instructions available on the Immigration Department website at http://www.immigration.go.tz/. UNHCR / September 2018 37