Volker Türk presents the Human Rights Appeal 2025
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) launched, in January 2025, the new Human Rights Appeal 2025.
The Human Rights Appeal 2025 is a strategic document outlining OHCHR’s priorities and financial needs. As the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, emphasized “the solutions to today’s endless wars, to the climate crisis, to our troubled relationship with technology, lie in more respect for human rights, not less.” The document highlights the relentless work carried out by the OHCHR in 2024, from strengthening humanitarian assistance in Brazil and Somalia to police training for Liberia’s elections and supporting refugees from Ukraine. The work of the OHCHR is guided by the vision “Human Rights: A Path for Solutions” outlined by the Türk in February 2024. This vision underscores that human rights provide the keys to unlocking solutions to crises like armed conflicts, the climate emergency, inequalities and the complex implications of new technologies. This vision was complemented by the adoption of the Pact for the Future in September 2024, underlining the crucial role of human rights in addressing the most urgent challenges of our time. Furthermore, the OHCHR encompasses in the document some major plans and priorities for 2025, the main ones include among others, focusing on enhancing their global presence, strengthening democracy and building a global movement for human rights, fostering inclusion and equality and promoting climate and environmental action that protects people's rights.
The 2025 Human Rights Appeal aims to raise essential funds to support the office’s activities worldwide, addressing crucial challenges such as protecting the rights of the most vulnerable, promoting justice and the rule of law, and strengthening accountability for human rights violations. During the official launch in Geneva, Switzerland, in January 2025, the High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has underlined that $500 million will be needed to address multiple crises that risk reversing decades of progress and threaten security and human rights.
Despite the challenges, Türk expressed hope, stating that investing in human dignity and human rights helps build more resilient societies. He stressed that human rights are the most powerful tool to mobilize people for peace, security, and sustainable development.
The Human Rights Appeal 2025 is available online at the following link https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/publications/annualappeal/United-Nations-Human-Rights-Appeal-2025.pdf