By December 2017, the total registered stateless population was 486,440, with over 40,000 people having acquired nationality since 2012 – 10,654 countrywide in 2017 alone. Of the total figure, 100,545 stateless individuals are registered in Chiang Rai province, where UNHCR and its partner ADRA implement the Statelessness Reduction and Community Sensitization project. Fourteen service points where ADRA provides legal counselling and assists stateless people with nationality related procedures were fully operational during the reporting period, targeting activities in 28 schools and 43 communities through three districts.
Given the increased caseload, UNHCR has designed a suitable web-based software to manage individual cases more efficiently. The database has proven to be an important and useful investment not only in terms of having a proper case management system, but also in generating accurate statistical reports and overall performance monitoring. Legal counselling sessions were provided to 15,584 individuals and 2,163 nationality applications were submitted for district/provincial level approval, among 13,660 applications prepared. Similarly, in 2017, 659 cases assisted (340 females and 319 males) were granted nationality, which was 59 per cent higher than last year. Despite the project reaching 91 per cent of the agreed target in terms of applications prepared, thanks to the database –which is progressively becoming more comprehensive - UNHCR found that only 16 per cent of these applications were actually ready for submission. On further analysis, it was found that the lack of evidence to support an application, the absence of streamlined administrative procedures, and the continuing need to strengthen project staff’s legal skills, are the main reasons for such low completion rate. Consequently, UNHCR and ADRA will reorient the strategy in 2018, focusing on completion of the applications previously opened.
Community outreach was achieved through awareness raising and trainings, with the participation of 7,278 stateless students and villagers. UNHCR continued to strengthen interaction with government counterparts and civil society. In particular, our partner is now part of the Legal Status Network in Chiang Rai, whose members participate in a Steering Committee in Mae Chan District and facilitate a screening process for undocumented students, resulting in the increased number of submissions. Moreover, UNHCR - in collaboration with the Bureau of Registration Administration (BoRA) – organized three “Workshops on Legal Status and Nationality”, which took place in Chiang Mai (28-30 August), Chiang Rai (4-6 September) and Kanchanaburi (27-29 November) provinces, where high numbers of stateless populations are registered. The content included nationality legislation, implementation challenges, and also an open session for both government officials and participating NGOs. Approximately 311 government officials involved in nationality procedures attended these training sessions.
In terms of policy and considering that Thailand had endorsed UNHCR’s zero statelessness goal by 2024, the Country Office continues to enhance its relationship with the RTG acknowledge its efforts to reduce statelessness. At the same time, UNHCR has expressed concern on the current rate of acquisitions (10,654 were granted in 2017) compared to the official figures of registered stateless people in the country (486,440), which would make it difficult to reach the zero-statelessness target by 2024. In this respect, it continues to urge the authorities to adopt streamlined district-level procedures, reduce/waive fees, revise rules of evidence and provide regular refresher training sessions to district and province officials on the policy and procedures. A study commissioned by UNHCR and produced by Chiang Mai University is expected in March 2018 and will provide recommendations on how these bottlenecks could be eased. Given that Thailand remains highly committed to addressing the entire stateless population by 2024, UNHCR will continue to support and accompany the RTG in their decisive efforts to provide nationality solutions, which remains a model in the region.
2017