OSCE Chairpersonship of North Macedonia, UNHCR, OSCE Mission to Skopje, HCNM and ODIHR join forces to end statelessness in South-Eastern Europe

SKOPJE, 17 October 2023 – Resolving all known cases of statelessness in South-Eastern Europe and preventing children from being born stateless are the commitments made by the national authorities and civil society representatives at a regional conference held today in Skopje, North Macedonia.

The conference was organized by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, the OSCE Mission to Skopje, the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), under the auspices of the OSCE Chairpersonship of North Macedonia.

To fulfil their commitments, national authorities and civil society representatives from North Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia, took stock of achievements in the region. They also identified actions needed to promote access to civil documentation – a fundamental human right for all.

“Statelessness is a global phenomenon affecting millions of people, depriving them of their fundamental rights, access to essential services and above all dignity. Addressing statelessness is our common struggle and endeavour. Only by working together, with good faith and sincere efforts, can we fulfil our joint mission to eradicate this dilemma. North Macedonia’s clear political will and dedication to eradicate statelessness demonstrates our steadfast commitment to provide legal identity for identified unregistered persons by the end of 2023,” said the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Foreign Minister of North Macedonia Bujar Osmani, while opening the event.

“We have seen significant strides, but we are not out of the woods just yet. Continued political will is necessary to fulfil the commitments made to prevent and resolve statelessness. Solutions are easily within reach – for statelessness can be resolved with just the stroke of a pen - if governments are willing to take action,” stated UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection Gillian Triggs.

The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Kairat Abdrakhmanov, said that by working to prevent and address statelessness within national minority populations, the OSCE participating States not only uphold the principles of equality and justice but also contribute to long-term peace, stability, and social cohesion.

“It is therefore important that we all work collectively to ensure that national minorities within the OSCE region, and here we are talking about South-Eastern Europe in particular, have access to nationality. This will strengthen our efforts to promote inclusive societies and foster a common sense of belonging,” stressed Abdrakhmanov. 

“Stateless people often remain invisible in our societies and are unable to enjoy the full spectrum of their human rights. The right to a nationality is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and every country of the OSCE has committed to ensuring this right. ODIHR will continue to support countries across the OSCE region in their efforts to prevent and end statelessness,” emphasized Director Matteo Mecacci of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights.

“In North Macedonia, significant progress has been made. The country has accelerated the registration process, demonstrating that when all relevant stakeholders, including the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Assembly, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, our mission, and the UNHCR collaborate, the unimaginable becomes achievable,” said Ambassador Kilian Wahl, Head of the OSCE Mission to Skopje.  “Several best practices can be gleaned from North Macedonia's success, and I hope they can inspire others”.

Since the 2011 adoption of the Zagreb Declaration on Access to Civil Documentation and Registration in South-Eastern Europe, over six thousand stateless people acquired a nationality or had it confirmed, and countries across the region have taken important steps to remove discrimination from birth registration procedures, provide civil documentation without discrimination, and introduce safeguards to prevent childhood statelessness. With North Macedonia’s accession to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness in 2020, all countries in South-Eastern Europe are now party to both the 1954 and 1961 UN Conventions on Statelessness.

UNHCR and OSCE stand ready to support governments and civil society to end statelessness. By joining the Global Alliance to End Statelessness, a new initiative which accelerates finding solutions to statelessness, governments have an opportunity to renew their commitment to this cause.