The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Representation in North Macedonia welcomes the approval of the accession to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness by the Parliament of North Macedonia. Accession to the statelessness conventions is one of the global commitments made by States towards the goal of ending statelessness by 2024. With the final step, depositing of instruments of accession, to be taken soon, North Macedonia will be party to the two major UN treaties on statelessness, the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, and complete its legal framework to reduce and prevent the occurrence of statelessness at the midpoint of the ten year #IBelong Campaign launched by UNHCR in 2014.
UNHCR Representative in North Macedonia, Ms. Monica Sandri, applauded the commitment of North Macedonia to eradicate statelessness, as demonstrated by the approval of the accession to the 1961 Convention, which was announced last week when States gathered in Geneva to reinforce efforts to end statelessness in the world.
“In the modern era in which we live, marked by technological advancement and investment in human well-being, we cannot accept that people still live without the most basic precondition for accessing the whole set of fundamental human rights – a formal identity. Not having a formal identity, or being stateless, causes extreme vulnerability: a life without formal education, medical services, or the opportunity for employment. The Government of North Macedonia has made the right decision to prevent this from happening ever again by making statelessness eradication one of its highest priorities and working towards the concept of one society for all, where no one is left behind”, said Monica Sandri.
Statelessness is a problem that affects millions of people around the globe. Women and children are particularly impacted, with their lack of nationality leaving them in extremely vulnerable circumstances. The right to a nationality is a fundamental human right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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