United Nations in Türkiye

The Sustainable Development Goals are a global call to action to end poverty, protect the earth’s environment and climate, and ensure that people everywhere can enjoy peace and prosperity. These are the goals the UN is working on in Türkiye:

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23 October 2026

UN Türkiye visits Anıtkabir on the 81st anniversary of the United Nations

To mark the 81st anniversary of the United Nations, a UN Türkiye delegation led by UN Resident Coordinator Dr. Babatunde Ahonsi visited Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder and first President of the Republic of Türkiye.The visit began with the delegation’s procession along the Lion Road, followed by a visit to Atatürk’s mausoleum to pay their respects and lay a wreath. UN Resident Coordinator in Türkiye Dr. Babatunde Ahonsi then signed the Anıtkabir memorial book. The visit reaffirmed the United Nations’ commitment to peace, sustainable development and leaving no one behind. Ahead of COP31, which Türkiye will host this year, the message also highlighted the shared responsibility to protect nature and work together to combat climate change.In the memorial book, Ahonsi wrote:“Aziz Atatürk,On the 81st anniversary of the United Nations, we stand before you. Amid ongoing conflicts in our region and around the world, we reaffirm our commitment to peace, sustainable development and leaving no one behind.Inspired by your words, ‘Eyes that do not see green are deprived of the joy of colour,’ we underscore our responsibility to protect nature and leave a liveable world for future generations. As we look towards COP31, which Türkiye will host this year, we continue to work shoulder to shoulder with the people of Türkiye to combat climate change." With Republic Day on 29 October approaching, Anıtkabir also welcomed many school groups, with children of all ages visiting the site. The students watched with interest as the UN Türkiye delegation made its way towards the mausoleum.

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A group of people standing together on the stairs that go to Atatürk's mauseloum

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22 October 2026

UN’s 81st Anniversary in Ankara: Art and Dialogue on the Road to COP31

The United Nations in Türkiye marked the Organization’s 81st anniversary with a gathering focused on the value of multilateral cooperation and the need to turn shared commitments into tangible improvements in people’s lives, as Türkiye prepares to host COP31 in Antalya.Held under the theme “UN at 81: Multilateralism for People and the Planet on the Road to COP31,” the commemoration brought together representatives of government, the diplomatic community, the United Nations and partners. The programme combined a high-level panel with art made from discarded materials, connecting the discussion of collective action with an opportunity for participants to contribute to a shared creation. Opening the event, UN Resident Coordinator in Türkiye Dr. Babatunde Ahonsi recalled the Organization’s founding promise to protect future generations from war, uphold human dignity and advance social progress. That promise, he said, remained its compass amid conflict, inequality, climate change and declining trust.He emphasized that the value of international cooperation becomes visible in everyday life: when children receive vaccines, displaced families find protection and humanitarian assistance reaches people in need.“We must also acknowledge the distance between the promise of international cooperation and what people experience. Our credibility depends on closing that distance,” Ahonsi said.With COP31 taking place in Antalya from 9 to 20 November, he highlighted the opportunity offered by Türkiye’s hosting of the conference and Australia’s leadership of the negotiations to build trust and advance collective action.“Our task is to translate commitments into changes people can feel: cleaner energy, resilient cities, secure livelihoods, and stronger protection for communities facing climate impacts,” he said. The panel, moderated by UN Women Türkiye Director Maryse Guimond, featured Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Berris Ekinci, Australian Ambassador to Türkiye Sally-Anne Vincent and Ahonsi. The discussion explored the UN’s relevance, institutional renewal and the Türkiye–Australia partnership for COP31.Ekinci reaffirmed Türkiye’s support for the United Nations and the Secretary-General’s UN80 Initiative. She stressed the need to strengthen implementation through finance, technology and capacity-building.“Our goal in Antalya is clear: to demonstrate that the international climate process can deliver concrete results,” she said, linking that ambition to rebuilding confidence in multilateral cooperation.Vincent reflected on the lessons of shared leadership. She explained that the Türkiye–Australia partnership brought distinct roles and regional perspectives together around a common objective. Clear responsibilities, complementary strengths and sustained coordination, she said, offered lessons for future multilateral processes.The discussion also addressed how the United Nations could respond to expectations for faster, fairer and more effective delivery. Ahonsi emphasized better coordination, responsible use of resources and easier access to expertise across the UN system, alongside Member States’ responsibility to fulfil their commitments and provide the support needed for the Organization to deliver.Art brought another dimension to the commemoration. Ahonsi announced zero waste artist Serkan Şerefhanoğlu as UN Türkiye Advocate for Art and Sustainable Development, recognizing the potential of his work to engage people in responsible consumption and climate action.For UN Day, Şerefhanoğlu created an artwork from discarded materials, inspired by the many ways the United Nations makes a difference in people’s lives, from fighting hunger and supporting education to protecting displaced people, advancing health and safeguarding the planet. A separate piece depicting the UN Türkiye logo invited guests to contribute discarded materials under the artist’s guidance, experiencing how individual contributions could become part of a collective work.Accepting the designation, Şerefhanoğlu expressed his pride in using art to encourage people of all ages to prevent waste.“What speaks to the eye can reach the heart,” Ahonsi said. “And when the hope for a sustainable future takes root in our hearts, it strengthens our will to build it.”

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29 September 2026

Muğla dialogue brings local climate priorities to the road to COP31

Municipalities are central to turning climate commitments into practical improvements in people’s lives. That message shaped the “Towards COP31: Local Climate Action Policy Dialogue” held in Muğla on 29 September 2026, bringing together mayors, municipal representatives, national institutions, financial actors, academia, the private sector and civil society.Convened by Muğla Metropolitan Municipality, UCLG-MEWA, WALD, UN Türkiye and the COP31 High-Level Climate Champion, the dialogue explored how to connect national climate commitments with local development planning and enable municipalities to finance, implement and scale climate solutions.The dialogue followed the opening day of the Mediterranean Climate Summit, where UN Resident Coordinator in Türkiye Dr. Babatunde Ahonsi addressed the growing pressures facing the region, including heatwaves, drought, wildfires, water scarcity and flooding. He called for stronger cooperation and investment in resilience, emphasizing the role of local governments in shaping climate responses.“Local governments should not simply be seen as implementers of decisions taken elsewhere. They are essential partners in designing and delivering effective climate solutions,” Ahonsi said at the summit.Connecting climate commitments with local deliveryOpening the policy dialogue on 29 September, Ahonsi stressed that “global commitments are ultimately delivered locally, or they are not delivered at all.”For municipalities, climate change is already affecting essential services, infrastructure and livelihoods. Heatwaves threaten older people and outdoor workers; drought places pressure on water supplies and agriculture; and flooding damages homes and disrupts communities. Responding to these challenges requires climate action, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development to be pursued together.“A resilient city, therefore, is not simply a city with stronger infrastructure. It is a city that protects people, reduces inequalities and ensures that everyone has a voice in shaping its future,” Ahonsi said.He emphasized that women, children, older persons, persons with disabilities, low-income households, migrants and other vulnerable groups must be included in decisions about local climate action.Discussions addressed local leadership and cooperation across levels of government; inclusive urban resilience and climate-responsive planning; access to climate finance; a just and inclusive transition; water, food, nature and circularity; and the use of innovation, technology, data and artificial intelligence.In Muğla, coastal resilience, tourism, water security, biodiversity and nature-based solutions provided a regional context for examining how municipalities can respond to climate risks while advancing sustainable development.Enabling municipalities to implement solutionsA central focus was how to equip municipalities with the resources and partnerships needed to deliver their climate priorities. Participants explored stronger national-local coordination, better project preparation, innovative financing instruments and closer cooperation with development and commercial banks.Ahonsi called for stronger connections between municipal priorities and development finance institutions, climate funds, commercial finance and private investment.“We also need to move beyond identifying projects towards developing investment-ready pipelines that can be financed and implemented,” he said.The dialogue produced a Muğla Joint Declaration on Local Climate Commitment, setting out priorities including investment-ready municipal climate projects, nature-based solutions, inclusive governance, resilient infrastructure, water security, circularity and better use of climate data.Process towards COP31Muğla marks the first step in a broader regional dialogue process, with Gaziantep serving as the next. Gaziantep will bring perspectives on resilient cities, green industry, circularity and inclusive transition. Findings from the process will be consolidated into a Local Climate Action Call to COP31, bringing municipalities’ priorities, solutions and financing needs to the international climate agenda as Türkiye prepares to host the conference in Antalya.UN Türkiye is supporting this process by connecting local priorities with national and global commitments, facilitating partnerships and helping successful local solutions to be shared and scaled.

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22 September 2026

Guterres: ‘Cracks have become canyons’ as world faces four tests of power

Key pointsUN chief urges binding international cooperation on AI governance, warning that life-and-death decisions must never be handed to machinesCalls for Security Council reform, highlighting the continued “indefensible” absence of permanent African representationFor the first time in its history, UN has achieved full gender parity across senior leadership and staff With roughly 100 days remaining in his term as UN Secretary-General, António Guterres delivered a wide-ranging speech that framed the world’s most pressing crises not as isolated problems, but as different expressions of the same underlying struggle over how power is exercised and by whom.“The greatest power is not the power to dominate. It is the power to build a future that works for everyone,” he said, presenting his annual report of the Organization.Describing a decade of eroding international norms – from civilians targeted in war, and humanitarian workers killed, to international law “cast aside” and fraying trust between nations – he said power itself is being fundamentally reshaped in three ways:Emergence of new State powersSignificant transfer of authority from governments to private corporations and individualsGrowing role of AI and autonomous weapons in decisions once reserved for humans“The faultlines in our world are widening,” he said. “Cracks have become canyons.”Rather than accepting fragmentation as inevitable, he called for galvanizing cooperation and a truly global network built on interdependence and shared rules while warning against sliding into rival blocs with separate economic and security systems, a scenario he has termed in recent years the Great Fracture.No real ceasefire in sightPointing to cascading crises across the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan and Myanmar, Mr. Guterres argued that so-called ceasefires have often amounted to little more than “lesser fires”, with civilians continuing to pay the price.He renewed calls for compliance with International Court of Justice (ICJ) orders regarding Gaza and warned that settlement expansion in the Israeli-occupied West Bank threatens to extinguish the two-State solution.He also condemned Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine as a clear violation of the UN Charter.Renewing longstanding calls for Security Council reform, he singled out the continued absence of permanent African representation as “unjust and indefensible” given the 15-member organ’s founding in a starkly different geopolitical era.Equality is not a dream; it is a decision’Highlighting the gap between record global wealth and the billions still lacking access to food, clean water, education and healthcare, he said inequality is not merely an economic issue but a question of power over opportunity, resources and self-determination.He reiterated his long-held view that the international financial system leaves developing nations crushed by debt while facing climate disasters they did little to cause. In this vein, he called for faster debt relief, bolder multilateral development banks and fairer access to Special Drawing Rights created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).Devoting particular attention to gender inequality, he announced that the UN has achieved full gender parity across senior leadership, headquarters staff, and professional roles for the first time in its history.Twin challenges: Climate and AIOn climate change, Mr. Guterres said the crisis is the “most profound intergenerational power imbalance”, warning of a near-certain breach of the 1.5°C threshold.Calling for polluters to “pay” and for developed nations to triple adaptation funding, he pointed out that major oil companies are reaping substantial profits since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine while global adaptation finance for developing countries remains a fraction of that sum.Turning to AI, the Secretary-General warned that power is increasingly concentrated in data, computing capacity and algorithms, advancing faster than humanity’s capacity to govern it.“The danger is not technology,” he said. “The danger is technology without accountability.”Outlaw killer robotsGuard rails on AI must be built, the UN chief said, adding that children must never become the test-subjects for unregulated systems.“Life-and-death decisions must never be surrendered to machines,” he warned. “Killer robots must have no place in our future.”To address this, he called for a multilateral AI risk management framework with independent oversight, stating firmly that children must never become test subjects for unregulated systems and that life-and-death decisions must never be surrendered to machines.Stronger, not weakerMr. Guterres reaffirmed that peace, development and human rights are inseparable pillars of the UN Charter, rejecting any notion that dignity and rights can be divorced from security and opportunity.In the face of global catastrophe more than 80 years ago on the battlefields of World War Two, the United Nations was created as an act of defiance of hope, of people who refuse to surrender the future to fear and of countries that know their futures are bound together.Pledging to carry the “spirit of resolve” through his remaining time in office, he vowed to continue championing the UN Charter’s values, even after leaving his post as Secretary-General.“The world does not need a weaker United Nations,” he said. “It needs a UN strong enough to face the world as it is and determined enough to build the world as it should be.”

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UN Secretary-General António Guterres speaks at a podium with two microphones against a green marble backdrop during the opening of the UN General Assembly's 81st session.

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22 September 2026

President Erdoğan addresses UN General Assembly and meets Secretary-General Guterres

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed world leaders at the opening of the annual high-level debate of the United Nations General Assembly, calling for reform of the Organization and renewed international efforts to restore trust in the multilateral system.“The United Nations, established 81 years ago to maintain international peace and security, is no longer able to fulfil this mission,” President Erdoğan said. “Or more precisely, it has been rendered unable to do so.”Pointing to more than 60 conflicts and wars worldwide, he described the past 12 months as one of the bloodiest periods of the past three decades.“The past 12 months have gone down in history as one of the bloodiest periods of the last 30 years, marked by more than 60 conflicts and wars from Gaza to Ukraine and Russia, from Myanmar to Darfur, from Iran to Lebanon,” he said.President Erdoğan said people who had placed their hopes in the United Nations, including those in Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan and other crisis-affected areas, had been deeply disappointed.He focused in particular on the situation of the Palestinian people, stating that the injustices endured by Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank “deeply offend the conscience of humanity.”“The world is bigger than five”President Erdoğan expressed support for ongoing efforts to reform the United Nations, including the Security Council, which comprises five permanent and 10 elected members.“We must acknowledge that a system in which the will of more than 190 countries is subject to the whim of just five countries is not a fair system, and it is not capable of fully inspiring or establishing trust either,” he said, reiterating that “the world is bigger than five.”He also stressed that international law must be applied equally to strong and weak countries alike, warning that an international system in which impunity becomes the norm is destined to decay.President Erdoğan said Türkiye would remain committed to efforts aimed at restoring confidence in the United Nations and strengthening the Organization’s capacity to fulfil its mandate.Meeting with Secretary-General GuterresOn the margins of the General Assembly, UN Secretary-General António Guterres met with President Erdoğan.The Secretary-General and the President exchanged views on Cyprus, the war in Ukraine and the situation across the Middle East.

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addresses delegates from a podium bearing the United Nations emblem at a UN session in New York.

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Press Release

10 July 2026

At least one million women and girls lose access to critical support as aid cuts dismantle women’s organizations working in humanitarian crises

New York/Geneva, 10 July 2026 – As armed conflicts reach highest levels in 80 years, organizations providing life-saving services to women and girls are running out of money. Beyond the Breaking Point, a new UN Women report published today on the impact of aid cuts, finds that at least one million women and girls have lost access to critical support since January 2025. The report is based on responses from 855 women-led and women’s rights organizations across 52 crisis-and conflict-affected countries.“The women’s organizations at risk of being shut down are on the frontlines of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. In countries including Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Haiti, they operate where international actors cannot and stay long after global attention has moved on. Every dollar withdrawn from women’s organizations is a dollar withdrawn from survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, displaced mothers, girls forced from school, and communities struggling to survive”, said Sofia Calltorp, UN Women Chief of Humanitarian Action.The collapse of women’s organizations is happening as needs reach historic levels. Some 120 million women and girls require humanitarian assistance and protection worldwide [1] and 84 per cent of women’s organizations surveyed report that demand for their services has increased since January 2025. Nearly nine in 10 say they can no longer meet current levels of need. Two in five organizations surveyed expect to shut down, temporarily or permanently, within the next year.To keep life-saving services afloat, women leading or working in the organizations surveyed are paying with their own labour, income, and wellbeing. Many are crisis-affected themselves. Sixty-five per cent of women-led organizations report staff working without pay to keep services running. As organizations slip into survival mode, 48 per cent – nearly half – report rising burnout among their staff, while 88 per cent say the mental health of the women and girls they serve is deteriorating.The consequences of the funding cuts are already visible. Half of women’s organizations have introduced waiting lists or are turning away women and girls in need. Ninety-two per cent of organizations report increasing levels of poverty among the women they serve, while 82 per cent report seeing more girls dropping out of school.Conflict-related sexual violence doubled in 2025, just as the systems designed to protect survivors are collapsing. Eighty-six per cent of women’s organizations report an increase in gender-based violence in the communities they serve. Sixty-two per cent of organizations report that safe spaces are no longer available or have been significantly reduced.Behind these numbers are devastating consequences. A woman seeking refuge from violence might show up at the door of a shelter that has shut down; a pregnant woman may have to walk for hours to reach a health clinic; or a mother may be denied food for her children. The women and girls left behind first are those with the fewest alternatives: women and girls in remote, conflict-affected and hard-to-reach communities. Nearly two-thirds, or 63 per cent, of organizations have already cut services in those areas.The report warns that the consequences extend far beyond humanitarian response. The dismantling of women’s organizations is not happening in a vacuum but against a global backlash on the rights of women and girls. One in five organizations has already suspended work advancing women’s leadership and gender equality. More than half are already witnessing declining participation of women in community leadership and local decision-making.UN Women is calling for sustained investment in women’s organizations as indispensable first responders, defenders of women’s rights, and the foundation of peace and recovery. “Without immediate action, the organizations that have kept women and girls alive through the world’s worst crises risk becoming another casualty of war”, concluded Calltorp.UN Women works with and invests in women-led organizations as essential partners in humanitarian action – providing funding, technical support, and advocacy to strengthen their leadership, expand access to life-saving services, and advance inclusive, locally led humanitarian responses that meet the needs of women and girls. [1] UN Women estimate according to 2026, OCHA Humanitarian Needs OverviewAll information provided is reported by respondents and has not been independently verified by UN Women unless otherwise specified.About UN WomenUN Women exists to advance women’s rights, gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. As the lead United Nations entity on gender equality, we shift laws, institutions, social norms and services to close the gender gap and build an equal world for all women and girls. We keep the rights of women and girls at the centre of global progress – always, everywhere. Because gender equality is not just what we do. It is who we are. ContactFor more information or to interview UN Women experts, please contact [ Click to reveal ]

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Press Release

09 December 2025

Seven in ten women human rights defenders, activists and journalists report online violence

Geneva – 9 December 2025 – Online violence against women human rights defenders, activists and journalists has reached a tipping point, often fueling offline attacks, according to a new report released today, produced by the European Commission and UN Women’s ACT to End Violence against Women programme, in partnership with researchers from TheNerve, City St George’s, University of London and the International Center for Journalists, and in collaboration with UNESCO. Without strong countermeasures, online violence risks driving women out of digital spaces, undermining democracy and freedom of expression. The report, Tipping point: The chilling escalation of violence against women in the public sphere, shows that 70 per cent of surveyed women have experienced online violence in the course of their work. Furthermore, 41 per cent of respondents reported offline harm linked to online abuse. For women journalists, the link between online abuse and offline harm has become more concerning. In a 2020 global survey published by UNESCO, 20 per cent of women journalists associated the offline attacks or abuse they experienced with online violence. In the new 2025 survey – conducted by the same researchers and presented in this report – that share of journalists and media workers has more than doubled to 42 per cent.“These figures confirm that digital violence is not virtual – it’s real violence with real-world consequences”, said Sarah Hendricks, Director of Policy, Programme and Intergovernmental Division at UN Women. “Women who speak up for our human rights, report the news or lead social movements are being targeted with abuse designed to shame, silence and push them out of public debate. Increasingly, those attacks do not stop at the screen – they end at women’s front doors. We cannot allow online spaces to become platforms for intimidation that silence women and undermine democracy.”“This data shows that in the age of AI-fueled abuse and rising authoritarianism, online violence against women in the public sphere is increasing. But what’s truly disturbing is the evidence that women journalists’ experience of offline harm associated with online violence has more than doubled since 2020 – with 42 per cent of 2025 survey participants identifying this dangerous and potentially deadly trajectory”, said Professor Julie Posetti, lead researcher and Director of TheNerve’s Information Integrity Initiative. The report also finds that close to one in four surveyed women human rights defenders, activists and journalists have experienced AI-assisted online violence, such as deepfake imagery and manipulated content. Writers and public communicators (e.g., social media content creators and influencers) who focus on human rights issues face the highest exposure, at 30 per cent.The report comes as the world wraps up the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. This year’s campaign is dedicated to raising awareness about digital violence, with calls for stronger laws and policies to recognize technology-facilitated violence against women as a human rights violation; robust regulation and accountability for tech companies; safety protocols and support systems for women human rights defenders, activists, journalists; and investment in research and data to monitor trends, understand intersectional impacts, and inform evidence-based policy and practice. UN Women will close the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign with a corporate strategy to prevent and respond to technology-facilitated violence against women, focused on strengthening accountability, closing evidence and data gaps, accelerating prevention and survivor-centered responses, as well as building greater resilience and amplifying the voices of women’s rights movements and women leaders.For interviews, contact the UN Women media team on media.team@unwomen.orgAbout ACTThe Advocacy, Coalition Building and Transformative Feminist Action (ACT) programme, is a game-changing commitment between the European Commission and UN Women as co-leaders of the Action Coalition on Gender Based Violence (GBV), in collaboration with the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women. The ACT shared advocacy agenda is elevating the priorities and amplifying the voices of feminist women’s rights movements and providing a collaborative framework focused on common priorities, strategies and actions.About UN Women
UN Women exists to advance women’s rights, gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. As the lead UN entity on gender equality, we shift laws, institutions, social behaviours and services to close the gender gap and build an equal world for all women and girls. We keep the rights of women and girls at the centre of global progress – always, everywhere. Because gender equality is not just what we do. It is who we are.About the Information Integrity InitiativeThe Information Integrity Initiative is a new project of TheNerve, the digital forensics lab founded by Nobel Laureate Maria Ressa. It anchors action-oriented research at the intersection of gender, disinformation, freedom of expression and public interest media.

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Press Release

25 November 2025

United Nations, Femicide Report 2024 Every 10 Minutes, a Woman or Girl Is Killed

On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, 25 November, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and UN Women jointly released a global report emphasizing that violence against women and girls is entirely preventable, yet femicide rates remain alarmingly high.According to the report, in 2024, 50,000 women and girls were killed by an intimate partner or a family member. This figure represents approximately 60 per cent of all intentional femicides. In 2023, the number was 51,100. The observed decrease is attributed to inequalities or discrepancies in country-specific data and does not reflect a genuine reduction. Today, every 10 minutes, a woman or girl is killed by someone close to her.The report states that, on average, 137 women and girls killed every day by intimate partners or family members. In contrast, only 11 per cent of male homicides occur in private settings.Regional Overview: Africa Has the Highest Rate, Europe Remains at RiskIn 2024, Africa recorded the highest rate of intimate partner or family-related femicides, with 3 victims per 100,000 population. The Americas and Oceania follow at 1.5 and 1.4 victims per 100,000, respectively. While Asia (0.7 per 100,000) and Europe (0.5 per 100,000) reported lower rates compared to the global average, the proportion of women killed by intimate partners in Europe is striking: in 2024, 64 per cent of women killed in Europe were murdered by their intimate partners.Examples from Europe and Central Asia reveal that many women face digital forms of violence before being killed, such as catfishing, doxing, online defamation, and cross-platform harassment. Some women are killed shortly after the perpetrator is released from prison. According to UNFPA data, the situation in Türkiye is similarly concerning. One in four young internet users in Türkiye experiences digital violence, and women are 27 times more likely than men to be affected.Digital Violence Kills: Hate Online Harms OfflineThe report highlights that online violence is not merely a “virtual” threat; rather, it is a tangible form of violence that leaves women and girls highly vulnerable to physical abuse and homicide. Research from the United Kingdom indicates that 60 per cent of women killed in domestic settings were monitored online before their deaths. Women with high public profiles, such as journalists, politicians, and activists, are among the groups most exposed to digital violence. Globally, one in four women journalists and, in many regions, 1 in 3 to 4 women politicians report receiving online threats, including death threats. Digital technologies facilitate the spread of violence against women in virtual environments, and women and girls are sometimes killed as a result of images and videos shared online. In certain cases, these murders are even broadcast live on social media, revealing the direct link between digital violence and deadly real-world consequences.Women are exposed to numerous forms of technology-facilitated violence, including catfishing, doxing, cyberflashing, online defamation, cross-platform harassment, sealioning, sextortion, and the misuse of image-based content.The joint 16 Days of Activism campaign by UN Women and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) this year is themed “End Digital Violence against Women and Girls. Full Stop!” highlighting the relationship between digital and physical violence.Statement from UN Women Türkiye Country Director Maryse Guimond“This report reminds us of a clear reality: femicide is not inevitable, it is preventable. Violence often begins in the digital sphere, continues through threats, pressure, and harassment, and, without timely intervention, ends in fatal outcomes. Everyone needs practical tools for online safety. Women and girls must know how to protect their accounts, recognize abusive behaviour, report incidents quickly, and support targeted individuals. To safeguard the right to life of every woman and girl, we must take early warning signs seriously and establish robust justice and effective protection mechanisms in both online and offline spaces.”Data-Driven Policy is EssentialThe report stresses that femicide data is underreported in many countries, resulting in invisibility that demands urgent action.UN Women and UNODC continue to work with countries to implement the international statistical framework adopted in 2022.The full report is available here: https://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2025/11/femicides-in-2024-global-estimates-of-intimate-partner-family-member-femicides

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Press Release

15 October 2025

Statement: Rural women rising – shaping resilient futures with Beijing+30

On this International Day of Rural Women, we call for bold action to advance the equality, rights, and empowerment of women and girls living in rural settings. Every day, they feed communities, protect the environment, and power sustainable development. Investing in them is both an act of justice and a safeguard for our shared future.For generations, women in rural settings have driven collective movements for change: mobilizing communities, influencing policies, and championing vital issues such as climate justice. Their leadership continues to build bridges between local action and global progress, even as rural areas are hit hardest by extreme poverty and food insecurity, impacting women, youth, and Indigenous Peoples the most. If current trends continue, 351 million women and girls will still live in extreme poverty by 2030.Amid these challenges, Verene Ntakirutimana’s story from Rwanda demonstrates how empowering women in rural settings creates tangible, lasting change. With support from the Joint Programme on Rural Women’s Economic Empowerment, she transitioned from subsistence farming to a thriving small business. Her success shifted community attitudes: challenging stereotypes, promoting shared decision-making, and inspiring others to follow her example.This year’s theme ‘Rural Women Rising’ is both a tribute and a call to action. Advancing their livelihoods, leadership, rights, and resilience --as set out in the Beijing+30 Action Agenda-- is essential. Initiatives such as the International Year of Women Farmers in 2026 and the Inter-American Decade for the Rights of All Women, Adolescents and Girls in Rural Settings (2024–2034), as well as community movements like Women to Kilimanjaro, offer powerful opportunities to make their work visible, their voices heard, and their rights recognized.When rural women rise, fields flourish, families thrive, and societies transform, propelling us toward the vision of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the SDGs.

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