ILGA World launches its 2025 annual report
- ILGA World’s latest annual report details the work done in 2025 by the largest global federation of organisations ensuring that people of diverse sexual orientations, genderrefers to a social construct which places cultural and social expectations on individuals based on their assigned sex. More identities and expressions, and sex characteristicsa term that refers to physical features relating to sex - including genitalia and other sexual and reproductive anatomy, chromosomes, hormones, and secondary physical features emerging from puberty. More can exercise their rights
- As of December 2025, a total of 2,304 member organisations from 175 countries and territories spread across six regions are part of ILGA World
- In 2025, our Board approved 182 new organisations to join the ILGA World membership
Dear member organisations, friends, and allies,
We are honoured to share the ILGA World 2025 Annual Report with you, where you will find a summary of our work over the past year.
When we can truly exercise our human rights, we can all live a life of dignity. But in 2025, authoritarian leaders and movements made deliberate choices to roll back equality, recognition and protections, cut the lifelines of millions, and suppress the resources that allowed our organisations to care for those whom States leave behind.
And yet, from the grassroots to the international stages, ILGA World continued to support our LGBTIacronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex people. Although this is not the acronym available to describe people of diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics, it is the most commonly used in United Nations spaces and advocacy. More communities worldwide, navigating together a time when reactionary forces are weakening the very systems designed to protect people and their rights.
Despite the setbacks, our communities kept working for a better world—and progress continued even in this dark year. The work that our member organisations and communities on the ground are doing is bringing about change!
A global constellation like ILGA grew from the energy of people who believed that, no matter who they are, everyone is worthy of respect. Today, we connect over 2,300 organisations across more than 170 countries and territories. Many of them work in places where speaking openly is still risky. Some work at the United Nationsan international organisation comprising 193 member States. It has the mission of maintaining peace and security, protecting human rights, providing humanitarian aid and ensuring economic and social development across the globe. It is a network of many different bodies and agencies, each of which has a particular role and responsibility. More. Many work quietly, locally, every day. What connects all of us is very simple. It is the belief that everyone deserves to live with dignity. Fully. Welcomed as they are.
Kimberly Frost and Yuri Guaiana, ILGA World co-Secretaries General
Like never before, we responded in allyship to the intense anti-rights pushback we are going through — uniting feminist, sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice, and LGBTI movements, as well as wider social justice and human rights organisations. […] Even in the darkest moments, thousands of people, groups, and organisations continue to show up, in countless places, against all odds.
Julia Ehrt, ILGA World Executive Director
ILGA World is grateful for the support of its member organisations, staff, consultants, and Board and Committee members who work tirelessly to make everything we do possible.
A heartfelt thank you goes to all the human rights defenders around the world for the time and energy they dedicate to advancing equality, equity, recognition, and respect for persons with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions, and sexrefers to the classification of a person as male, female, or other - usually made at birth, written on a birth certificate, and usually based on the appearance of their external anatomy. A person’s sex, however, is actually a combination of bodily characteristics, including chromosomes, hormones, internal and external reproductive organs, and secondary sex characteristics. More characteristics everywhere.
Our deepest thanks to those who have committed to funding our work in 2025 — including institutional donors, States, foundations, companies and individual donors.
ILGA World could not provide vital support and programming to the global LGBTI movement without donations from individuals like you. You can make a donation on DonorBox, Benevity (with employer-matching contributions), and Global Giving (providing tax receipts for the USA and GiftAid in the UK).
