What was the challenge?

Statelessness blocks access to everyday rights. When people are not recognised as nationals by any state, they can be denied basic rights and protections. This can include access to education, healthcare, housing, employment, documentation, and even the documents needed to move through daily life. 

In Pakistan, proof of citizenship is closely tied to identity documentation. Computerised biometric National Identity Cards (CNICs) issued by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), a key government agency, are required for many routine tasks. When people cannot obtain or renew these documents, they can become effectively invisible to the state, even if they were born in the country.

This work focused on how that plays out in Pakistan and the wider South Asian context, with particular attention to the 3 million strong Pakistani Bengali community, the majority of whom are based in Karachi. Many community members face repeated barriers to obtaining or renewing identity documentation, which then blocks access to services and opportunities across everyday life.

Without documentation, exclusion becomes long-term and often affects children’s education and future opportunities.

How did we approach it?

This work brought together community partnership, policy evidence, and public-facing engagement to make statelessness visible in decision-making spaces.

This work drew on a multi-year programme of research using oral history interviews, and creative workshops, with Pakistani Bengali adults and young people in Karachi. It focused on how citizenship is experienced in everyday life – including encounters with registration systems and the practical consequences of being unable to secure or maintain recognised identity documentation.

This evidence was translated into policy-facing formats, bringing research and lived experience into decision-making spaces through briefings, written submissions, and public-facing engagement with our partner Imkaan Welfare Organisation, the leading NGO in Pakistan working with stateless and marginalised communities.

What we found

The research consistently showed that:

  • Identity documentation acts as a gatekeeper to rights. A lack of documentation restricts access to healthcare, education and secure work.
  • Discrimination shapes access. Discrimination of the community is one of the key drivers of statelessness and leads to the creation of the external outsider.
  • Citizenship status stays insecure. Even where documentation is obtained, renewal/verification can trigger delays, scrutiny, and prolonged uncertainty about status and belonging. This has a direct impact on people’s wellbeing.
  • Poverty compounds the problem. Stateless peoples often reside in the most vulnerable localities susceptible to climate change and face further risk of displacement.
  • Children women and young people are disproportionately affected. Barriers to documentation can disrupt schooling and reduce life chances from early on.

It’s been 5 years since the ID card issue has been a problem. It has caused my husband to get ill. We have been to 3 different branches of NADRA offices with no clear answers.”

Community participant account, shared through the research

Using evidence to make a difference

This evidence has been used to support policy-facing discussion and advocacy in the UK and internationally:

UK Parliament briefing (APPG Human Rights): Presented evidence at a briefing with UNHCR for parliamentarians, officials and NGOs/CSOs.

Select Committee written evidence: Submitted written evidence to the International Development Committee inquiry in partnership with Imkaan Welfare Organisation and the Institute of Statelessness and Inclusion, putting documentation barriers on the policy record.

Public engagement and visibility: A partner social media campaign with Imkaan Welfare Organisation, shared young people’s letters to the Prime Minister, highlighting barriers to citizenship, education and opportunity.

Why it matters

Statelessness can leave people living without secure access to the basics that many others take for granted: schooling, healthcare, stable work and safe housing. This is particularly urgent for children and young people, where delays or exclusions early on can shape life chances for years. Statelessness hinders the attainment of multiple global sustainable development goals.

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Policy/practitioner takeaways

For UK policymakers and practitioners, this work shows how documentation systems and discrimination can block rights in real life, even when the law says people are entitled to support. It also highlights why international development and protection work needs to focus on implementation, as well as legislation.

Key facts

Related links

Image credit: ‘Saboot’ (Evidence) from the Partition of Identity Project.