War now affects over 600 million women and girls worldwide, a staggering 50% increase in just a decade, according to a recent United Nations report. As conflicts intensify and political landscapes shift, U.N. leaders warn that the decades of progress toward gender equality and women’s rights are increasingly at risk. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted in a new report the troubling erosion of rights and opportunities for women, saying, “generational gains in women’s rights hang in the balance around the world.”
The findings coincide with the anniversary of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, a landmark decision adopted on October 31, 2000, that advocated for equal participation of women in peacebuilding and conflict resolution. More than 20 years on, women’s involvement in peace negotiations remains negligible, hampered by persistent patriarchal structures and limited decision-making power for women in peace and security matters. Guterres emphasized the enduring imbalance: “As long as oppressive patriarchal social structures and gender biases hold back half our societies, peace will remain elusive.”
The report presented a bleak outlook for women in conflict zones, where the rate of female casualties has doubled in the past year. U.N.-verified incidents of conflict-related sexual violence have surged by 50%, and the number of girls affected by violence has risen by 35%. This alarming trend is evident across various regions: from Afghan girls barred from education to Sudanese women enduring sexual violence, and displaced women in Gaza, Syria, and Yemen grappling with the grim realities of conflict.
Sima Bahous, head of U.N. Women, highlighted the pervasive sense of abandonment felt by the 612 million women and girls affected by war, stating that they “wonder if the world has already forgotten them.” Bahous also highlighted stark statistics on food insecurity and health, revealing that one in two women in conflict zones face moderate to severe hunger, and that 61% of global maternal deaths occur in 35 conflict-ridden countries.
Despite the overwhelming need, progress toward including women in peacebuilding remains stalled. Bahous cited the discouraging statistic that women’s representation in peace negotiations has averaged below 10% over the past decade, reaching only 20% in U.N.-supported processes. The U.N. recently introduced a “Common Pledge on Women’s Participation in Peace Processes,” spearheaded by Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, aimed at urging governments and organizations to appoint more women as lead mediators and to consult with female leaders at all stages of peace processes.
In response to the U.N. findings, diplomats expressed frustration at the ongoing lack of political commitment to advancing women’s roles in peace efforts. Panama’s U.N. Ambassador Eloy Alfaro de Alba spoke directly to this issue, citing the continued absence of “political will” as a key obstacle in fulfilling member states’ commitments to gender equality in conflict resolution.
With calls for concrete action growing louder, the U.N. is emphasizing the need for meaningful inclusion of women in peace processes—not only as a matter of equality but as an essential step toward achieving sustainable peace.
