According to UNHCR estimates, statelessness affects millions of people worldwide, at least 700,000 of which are in West and Central Africa. There are many factors contributing to the risk of statelessness in the region, which suggest that the population at risk is very large.

Mixed movements refer to complex population flows: people using the same routes and modes of transportation to travel, but moving for different reasons, and with different needs. In these flows, refugees move alongside people fleeing financial hardship. West and Central Africa is a place of complex mixed movements, inside the region or from the region to other parts of the world, such as Europe through the Central Mediterranean route.

Today, there are 22,000 Ivorian refugees hosted in West Africa. Since 2011, UNHCR has facilitated the voluntary return in safety and dignity of over 70,000 Ivorian refugees and and continues to do so.

The Central Sahel region (Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger) is facing a severe humanitarian and protection crisis, pushing millions of people to flee their homes. Indiscriminate attacks by armed groups against civilians, summary executions of men, widespread use of rape against women, as well as attacks on State institutions, including schools and health facilities, are the latest drivers of displacement impacting a region already struggling with climate change, extreme poverty, a lack of economic opportunities and scarce basic services.