Key points
- The United Nations reported a significant increase in conflict-related sexual violence in 2025, with women and girls accounting for the overwhelming majority of victims.
- Armed groups and state actors were implicated in sexual violence linked to war, terrorism, detention and political repression across several conflict zones.
- The UN also unveiled progress on its UN80 reform initiative aimed at improving efficiency, reducing costs and strengthening institutional effectiveness.
Main story
The United Nations has reported a sharp increase in conflict-related sexual violence worldwide in 2025, warning that women and girls continue to bear the brunt of abuses linked to armed conflicts, terrorism, political repression and humanitarian crises.
Speaking at a news briefing in New York on Friday, UN Spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, said the latest report of the UN Secretary-General revealed a significant rise in verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence compared to 2024.
According to the report, a total of 77 parties, including both state and non-state actors, were listed for involvement in conflict-related sexual violence, underscoring the persistence of the crime across multiple conflict zones.
The report noted that sexual violence continued to be used as a tactic of war, torture, terrorism and political repression, with worsening political, security and humanitarian crises contributing to the surge.
Particularly alarming were reports from Burkina Faso, Mali and northern Mozambique, where armed groups abducted women and girls, some as young as 11 years old, subjecting them to repeated rape, sexual slavery and forced pregnancies while in captivity.
The report further highlighted incidents of sexual violence in detention facilities across several regions, including Israel and the Palestinian territories, the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
In Myanmar, the UN documented continuing patterns of sexual violence in detention settings, where such acts were allegedly used to intimidate, punish and silence political opponents.
The Secretary-General stressed that conflict-related sexual violence remains one of the most devastating consequences of war and instability, with long-term impacts on survivors, families and communities.
UN pushes major reforms under UN80 initiative
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has announced further progress on the UN 2030 Agenda, a wide-ranging reform programme aimed at making the global organisation more efficient, agile, and responsive to contemporary global challenges.
Addressing the General Assembly, Guterres said the reforms were necessary to ensure that every UN mandate, financial resource and decision delivers greater impact for people and the planet amid growing demands and limited resources.
The initiative, launched in March 2025, seeks to modernise the UN system through institutional restructuring, improved coordination and more effective service delivery.
As part of the reforms, the UN plans to reduce Secretariat posts by 21 per cent in 2026 while minimising the impact on staff. Eleven Secretariat teams are also expected to be merged into a common administrative platform serving approximately 6,000 personnel in New York, with similar reforms planned for other duty stations.
Guterres described the initiative as a “paradigm shift” in how the UN organises its work and collaborates across agencies, departments and programmes.
The reform programme also includes a review of thousands of mandates assigned by member states, to reduce duplication, improve transparency and ensuring that resources are aligned with measurable outcomes.
The issues
The rise in conflict-related sexual violence highlights the continued vulnerability of women and girls in conflict zones despite international legal frameworks designed to protect civilians.
Human rights advocates have repeatedly warned that sexual violence remains underreported in many conflict areas, meaning actual figures may be significantly higher than documented cases.
At the same time, the UN faces growing pressure to improve efficiency and effectiveness amid increasing global crises, funding constraints and rising humanitarian needs.
What’s being said
The UN says conflict-related sexual violence is increasingly being used as a deliberate weapon of war, repression and control by both state and non-state actors.
Secretary-General Guterres has argued that institutional reform is necessary to ensure the organisation remains capable of responding effectively to modern global challenges.
Gender advocates continue to call for stronger accountability mechanisms, survivor-centred support services and increased international action against perpetrators.
What’s next
The UN is expected to continue monitoring and documenting conflict-related sexual violence while supporting accountability efforts through international legal and human rights mechanisms.
Implementation of the UN80 Initiative will also continue, with member states expected to deliberate on proposed structural reforms and organisational changes.
Further consultations are anticipated on streamlining UN operations, improving coordination and strengthening the organisation’s capacity to respond to humanitarian and security challenges worldwide.
Bottom line
The UN’s latest report paints a troubling picture of escalating conflict-related sexual violence, particularly against women and girls in conflict zones. At the same time, the organisation is pursuing ambitious reforms aimed at enhancing its effectiveness and ensuring it remains capable of addressing increasingly complex global crises in the years ahead.
