On June 17, 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, led by Honorable Kazembe Kazembe, provided a comprehensive update to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs, Security Services, and War Veterans Affairs, focusing on the issue of statelessness in Zimbabwe. The report outlined the ongoing and planned measures to tackle this pressing issue.
The briefing addressed a 2021 Amnesty International study that highlighted significant factors contributing to statelessness in Zimbabwe, including the non-documentation of migrant workers and individuals affected by the Gukurahundi events. The Ministry criticized the report for being outdated and potentially inciting unnecessary emotions while failing to acknowledge the government’s substantial efforts to resolve these issues.
Statelessness, defined as the condition of lacking a recognized nationality or citizenship, affects approximately 300,000 people in Zimbabwe, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as of April 2021. Despite this estimate, the actual extent of statelessness in Zimbabwe has not been definitively determined. To address this, the Civil Registry Department plans to conduct a detailed study in collaboration with UNHCR, which has pledged USD 300,000 to support the project.
The study aims to estimate the number of stateless individuals in Zimbabwe, identify the causes and contributing factors, understand the obstacles to solutions, and recommend both interim and long-term solutions. Progress includes the formation of a Statelessness Task Force involving various government ministries and departments, the engagement of a consultant for a desk review, and the production of a desk-review report. Quantitative research, led by the Zimbabwe Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT), is the next step in the process.
Several legal provisions and measures are already in place to address statelessness. The Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No.20) Act 2013 includes sections that grant citizenship by birth to individuals born in Zimbabwe to parents from SADC countries and protect the citizenship of minors with unknown parents. The Births and Deaths Registration Act [Chapter 5:02] mandates compulsory birth registration and allows for late registrations without the Registrar General’s written authority. Efforts are underway to align this act with the Constitution.
The Ministry is also focused on ensuring the registration of orphans, abandoned children, and those affected by the Gukurahundi events, in collaboration with the Department of Social Development and traditional chiefs. The Civil Registry Department has decentralized registration services to all provinces and administrative districts, with 202 sub-offices nationwide, including in farming and mining communities. National mobile registration exercises are conducted to reach remote and disadvantaged areas.
The Ministry underscored the need for thorough investigations into claims of statelessness to verify the facts and origins of individuals. It reiterated that any instances of statelessness are not due to deliberate government policy but rather gaps that are being actively addressed. The Ministry remains committed to resolving statelessness through various measures and collaboration with international partners such as UNHCR.
In conclusion, Hon. Kazembe Kazembe reaffirmed the government’s dedication to ensuring that all citizens are documented and have access to their rights, highlighting ongoing efforts to address and prevent statelessness in Zimbabwe.
