Full Text Available
Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.
Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia
Zambia has one of the lowest birth registration rates in the world. Most children rarely have their births officially recorded. Lack of birth registration negatively impacts children. This research seeks to critically scrutinise the efficacy of Zambia's legal framework concerning statelessness, birt...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
Department of Public Law
2026
|
| Subjects: | |
| Tags: |
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1867614325366063104 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi |
| author2 | Lutchman, Salona |
| author_browse | Lutchman, Salona Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi |
| author_facet | Lutchman, Salona Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi |
| author_sort | Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Zambia has one of the lowest birth registration rates in the world. Most children rarely have their births officially recorded. Lack of birth registration negatively impacts children. This research seeks to critically scrutinise the efficacy of Zambia's legal framework concerning statelessness, birth registration, the right to name, identity and acquisition of nationality. The research determines that Zambia's legal framework does not protect stateless persons. Neither does it provide for the right to nationality, nor address the problem of statelessness. The research highlights gaps in the Zambian legal system, which falls short of recognising the existence of stateless persons. The laws on birth registration are restricted and only applicable to Zambians by birth, descent, registration and those adopted. Despite Zambia having ratified several international conventions protecting statelessness persons, majority of them have never been incorporated into the national legal system. Thus, the right of a child to nationality, identity, birth registration as provided by the UNCRC cannot be effectively realised by most children in Zambia. The research concludes by providing recommendations such as legal reforms to include specific provisions to facilitate the identification, prevention and protection of stateless persons in Zambia. Ratification and domestication of specific key conventions intended to curb statelessness. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/42719 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | English eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:50:15.054Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Department of Public Law |
| publisherStr | Department of Public Law |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/42719 Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi Lutchman, Salona statelessness birth registration identity Zambia has one of the lowest birth registration rates in the world. Most children rarely have their births officially recorded. Lack of birth registration negatively impacts children. This research seeks to critically scrutinise the efficacy of Zambia's legal framework concerning statelessness, birth registration, the right to name, identity and acquisition of nationality. The research determines that Zambia's legal framework does not protect stateless persons. Neither does it provide for the right to nationality, nor address the problem of statelessness. The research highlights gaps in the Zambian legal system, which falls short of recognising the existence of stateless persons. The laws on birth registration are restricted and only applicable to Zambians by birth, descent, registration and those adopted. Despite Zambia having ratified several international conventions protecting statelessness persons, majority of them have never been incorporated into the national legal system. Thus, the right of a child to nationality, identity, birth registration as provided by the UNCRC cannot be effectively realised by most children in Zambia. The research concludes by providing recommendations such as legal reforms to include specific provisions to facilitate the identification, prevention and protection of stateless persons in Zambia. Ratification and domestication of specific key conventions intended to curb statelessness. 2026-01-28T08:25:40Z 2026-01-28T08:25:40Z 2025 2026-01-28T08:24:18Z Thesis / Dissertation Masters LLM http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42719 en eng application/pdf Department of Public Law Faculty of Law University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | statelessness birth registration identity Siang'andu, Twaambo Ellah Mapenzi Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| title_full | Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| title_fullStr | Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| title_short | Eradicating statelessness: universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in Zambia |
| title_sort | eradicating statelessness universal birth registration as a means of realising the right to name and nationality in zambia |
| topic | statelessness birth registration identity |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42719 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT siangandutwaamboellahmapenzi eradicatingstatelessnessuniversalbirthregistrationasameansofrealisingtherighttonameandnationalityinzambia |