24th September 2026
- Progress is possible, but implementation matters: Recent reforms demonstrate that sustained advocacy can deliver meaningful legal change. Malaysia’s constitutional amendment, for example, now gives women equal rights to confer citizenship on children born abroad. However, reforms must also be effectively implemented to translate legal commitments into rights in practice.
- Momentum for reform must be sustained: Governments should build on existing commitments and reform processes to guarantee equal nationality rights regardless of sex or gender. In The Bahamas and Barbados, for example, there are opportunities to remove discrimination from their constitutions, building on judicial and commission reviews.
- Hard-won rights must be protected against regression: Iran’s repeal of its 2019 nationality law amendment demonstrates that progress cannot be taken for granted. Governments must not only remove discriminatory provisions but safeguard reforms against reversal.
- Governments must fulfil their international commitments: Lawmakers and policymakers should reform discriminatory nationality laws and regulations in line with their obligations under international treaties, the Sustainable Development Goals, the Beijing Platform for Action and the Pact for the Future.
- Civil society and legal advocates need continued support: UN treaty bodies and legal advocates should continue holding States accountable to international human rights standards, while funders should support civil society organisations and legal practitioners working to secure nationality law reform.