Former UN chief Boutros Boutros-Ghali will take part in the UN High Commission for refugees' campaign against statelessness, to kick off Tuesday.
In a statement, the organization said at least 10 million persons are still stateless and this means they have no legal identity, no passport, no vote, and no access to education, health care and other social services, including marriage.
The campaign calls on nations to take on 10 actions to end statelessness, including removing gender discrimination from nationality laws, so that mothers are allowed to pass on nationality to their children (in 27 countries women are denied the right to pass on their nationality to their children on an equal basis as men) and ensuring that all births are registered, so children do not slip through the system into a life of invisibility.
Priest Desmond Tutu, UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie and former US Secretary of State Madeline Albright will take part in the campaign.