The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a new political declaration reaffirming the global commitment to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, 25 years after the landmark Durban Declaration and Programme of Action was adopted in South Africa.
The declaration was adopted during a high-level meeting at UN Headquarters in New York on September 28, marking the 25th anniversary of the 2001 World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa. The anniversary meeting was convened to renew political support for implementing the Durban framework and to address continuing forms of racial discrimination.
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The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action remains the UN’s principal international framework for combating racism and related intolerance. It calls for measures including stronger laws and institutions, national action plans, education, collection of disaggregated data, equal participation, access to justice and remedies, and international cooperation.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the meeting that the fight against racism and discrimination is even more urgent today than it was when the Durban Declaration was adopted. Speakers also warned that racism continues to be embedded in institutions and societies, while digital platforms and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, can reproduce or amplify existing forms of discrimination.
President of the 81st UN General Assembly Khalilur Rahman said the international community must move beyond declarations and translate commitments into funded national action plans, measurable results and stronger accountability. He also called for action against racial profiling, impunity and discriminatory practices, as well as meaningful remedies and reparatory justice for victims of historical and continuing injustices.
The declaration also addresses the changing nature of racism in the digital age. Discussions at the meeting highlighted concerns that biased datasets, automated systems and online platforms can reinforce structural inequalities and spread racist or xenophobic content at greater speed and scale. Speakers called for transparency, human oversight, accountability and effective remedies in the development and use of artificial intelligence.
The anniversary meeting also renewed attention to the historical legacies of slavery, the transatlantic slave trade, colonialism, apartheid and genocide, as well as calls for acknowledgment, justice and reparatory measures. The UN has emphasized that the Durban framework takes a victim-centred approach and specifically recognizes the experiences of Africans and people of African descent, Indigenous Peoples, migrants, refugees and other groups affected by racism and discrimination.
The United States, Israel and some other countries have historically opposed aspects of the Durban process, citing concerns about antisemitism and language relating to Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In 2025, the General Assembly approved the arrangements for the 2026 anniversary meeting by a vote of 142-3, with 13 abstentions, with Argentina, Israel and the United States voting against.
Twenty-five years after Durban, UN officials and participating states are calling for renewed political commitment to turn the framework’s principles into concrete action. The emphasis at the anniversary meeting was that combating racism requires sustained national measures, international cooperation and accountability rather than commemoration alone.
