
Afghan refugees sit at registration center for migrants on their arrival from Pakistan at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in Spin Boldak on October 30, 2023. Islamabad has issued an order to 1.7 million Afghans it says are living in the country illegally to leave by November 1, or be deported. LEHTIKUVA / AFP
A recent conference by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Denmark highlighted a startling global issue: around one billion people, or one in every seven globally, do not have a legal identity. This situation severely limits their access to essential services and rights, including social services, banking, and voting, while complicating their mobility and pushing many towards perilous, irregular migration routes.