She said that if urgent actions were not taken, some of the 2.4 million Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, or refugees residing in neighbouring countries could lose their nationality and become stateless. She said that it could also become an obstacle to achieving durable solutions for displaced persons and prevent them from rebuilding their lives in dignity as well as impede return and relocation. "Before the crises, civil registration, including birth registration, were already low in the region and most of those displaced lack identity documents. "This has created many challenges, including discerning between refugees and IDPs in local communities, impacting their access to protection and rights. She said that the commitment of both countries gave impetus to the Abidjan Declaration in its engagement to reduce the risk of statelessness among the displaced populations.

Source: The North Africa Journal May 08, 2017 08:37 UTC