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Summary
Women’s Refugee Commission, ‘The Future of Protection for Refugee Women’, July 2026
Abstract
2026 marks the 75th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention, which along with its 1967 Protocol, has saved millions of refugees’ lives. Yet this historic milestone occurs at a time of record displacement, rising anti-refugee sentiment, rapid defunding of humanitarian systems, and weakening asylum pathways.
For refugee women and girls, these risks and harms are multiplied by the current stagnation and backlash on gender equality and women’s rights. Women and girls forced to flee because of conflict and persecution face escalating risks of violence, abuse, and exploitation, while pathways to safety, protection, assistance, and self-reliance seem to be shrinking. Yet refugee women are often the first responders to their families’ and communities’ needs, playing a leading role in sustaining systems of protection, care, and justice as they navigate displacement.
Refugee women’s voices, experiences, and priorities must shape the conversations around the future of protection and solutions. To mark World Refugee Day (20 June) and the 75th Anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention (28 July), the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC) will host a public dialogue between WRC’s new Executive Director and a panel of refugee women to reflect on the 1951 Refugee Convention, and share their recommendations for the future of protection.
