Turning the Tide: A Year of Setbacks, Progress, Despair and Hope.
By Abigail Erikson, Chief, UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women.
This year, we bore witness to unimaginable suffering. We saw the horrific atrocities unfold in Gaza, where Palestinian women and children bore the brunt of war, accounting for more than half of all fatalities. After more than 11 months of war, an estimated 177,000 women face life-threatening health risks, while nearly 84 per cent of health facilities has been damaged or destroyed. We heard the cries of Sudanese women experiencing a living nightmare filled with hunger and sexual violence. We continued to see Afghan women’s rights and voices being stripped away. These are only a few among the injustices this year, leaving countless to carry the weight of torment while the world watches.
Immediate and protracted crises — whether driven by conflict, climate catastrophe, or political instability — have unfortunately become a defining feature of our era, dismantling hard-won gains of women’s human rights. In the latest UN Women’s report on femicide, a grim reality is laid bare: every day, 140 women and girls worldwide continue to lose their lives at the hands of their partners or a close relative, which means one women or girl is killed every 10 minutes.
These are not isolated tragedies. These are systemic failures. The world is in crisis, and women’s lives are under siege — in their homes, on the streets, during times of war, and even in moments of so-called peace.
At the same time, violence against women and girls is evolving, reshaping itself within digital spaces. Online harassment, image-based sexual abuse, cyberstalking and other forms of technology-facilitated gender-based violence are rampant, eroding women and girl’s ability to participate freely in public and political life. Across many regions, feminist movements faced fierce backlash, underlining the ongoing struggle against entrenched patriarchal systems.
Driving forward against the pushback, progress and hope
While the global landscape remains fraught with challenges, women’s rights activists have continued their critical efforts to advance women’s social, economic and human rights with landmark achievements. Their work saves lives, empowers communities, and lays the groundwork for lasting change. From halting the repeal of the 2015 Women’s (Amendment) Act which bans female genital mutilation in the Gambia; to most recently, the landmark mass rape trial win for the courageous Gisèle Pelicot, women’s movements have achieved hard fought victories.
This year, I witnessed incredible efforts of grantee partners firsthand.
In Colombia, grantee partners work on ending severe forms of gender-based violence, including femicide and disappearances, in regions where wealth, armed conflict and criminal activity intertwine. Corporación Casa de la Mujer (CCM) is one of the leading feminist organizations in the country that have continued to increase access to justice for survivors of physical and sexual violence, and for the families of women lost to femicide.
During the opening segment at COP29, there were only eight women speaking out of 78 government leaders, and only four leaders mentioned the impact of climate change on women. Yet across the world, women and girls are bearing the brunt of climate impact and increased violence as a result. In South Sudan, years of political instability, unpredictable weather and widespread endemics have created severe food insecurity that in turn has exacerbated violence against women and girls. Women for Women International is facilitating community-led activities to help women adapt to the changing climate and protect their rights, when risks of violence come at high rates: on their way to seek water, food, or tend to their farms. Women need to be present in all spaces where decisions are being made, and especially where these decisions affect their lives greatly.
At every table, whenever possible
In 2024, I took every opportunity I had to highlight the widening gap between demands for proper resources to women’s rights organizations, and witness commitments of many partners.
For example, at UNHCR’s 2024 NGO Consultations in Geneva this year, I connected with colleagues and partners working with refugees, displaced or stateless women and girls to advocate for filling the gap in resourcing constituents-led organizations in current volatile contexts. This important advocacy continued following the joint pledge for funding special window on crisis-affected women and girls by Government of Sweden and the United Kingdom at the Global Refugee Forum in December 2023.
These critical messages were once again echoed at the Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) Forum, the AWID Forum and others throughout 2024. In these spaces, we heard it loud and clear: long-term, core and flexible funding is urgently needed for sustainability, resilience and care-centered feminist movements.
It is my responsibility as Chief of the UN Trust Fund to join with our partners and allies in the EVAW and feminist ecosystems, to bring these messages forward, next to and with our partners. It’s not just about securing funding — it’s about ensuring that these organizations have the resources and visibility they need to enable impact and build resilient organizations and movements.
Looking ahead
In 2025, we look ahead to the anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action, a landmark document for advancing women’s rights. The establishment of the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women itself was a critical outcome of the Platform and expression of global commitment by member states to end violence against women through its support to women’s rights organizations.
In 2024, the UN Trust Fund awarded new grants to 36 organizations in 41 countries and territories. Whilst these funds will be used to support life-changing initiatives, I am deeply aware of the huge unmet need to resource this work. Last year, we received US$ 1.5 billion in requests for funding towards grassroots initiatives, the first time of this volume and amount in the 3 decades of our existence, and were able to give $16 million, meeting less than 2% of this demand. Beijing+30 and our very own UN Trust Fund’s 30th anniversary in 2026 are therefore not only moments for reflection, but more importantly for renewing commitment to driving accountability and financing for the work of youth, women’s and girl’s rights and civil society organizations.
As we reflect on the gains, losses, and work still to be done towards ending violence against women and girls, my gratitude and appreciation goes to the UN Trust Fund’s grantee partners and women’s rights organizations, who tirelessly drive forwards efforts to end violence and support women and girls in their communities, as well as the UN Trust Fund’s Member State and private sector partners who have contributed to these efforts and pushed for this issue to remain in the spotlight.
I continue to wish for peace, equality and safety in this world. I am deeply thankful for — and cognizant of the countless acts of resistance and solidarity made daily by feminists, women’s rights groups, civil society, and our allies, all steadfast in their dedication to a world where all women and girls enjoy a life free from violence.
