Report: Most of the world lives in countries with religious freedom violations

Nearly two-thirds of the world's population lives in countries with "serious religious freedom violations," said a new report produced by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

The "2025 Religious Freedom Report" was released on Tuesday, October 21, in Rome. The biennial report covers the period from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024, and examines the religious freedom situation in 196 countries.

ACN is a nonprofit organization that "provides pastoral and humanitarian assistance to the persecuted Church around the world," says its website.

The 2025 report found that nearly 5.4 billion people live in the 62 countries where there are serious religious freedom violations — either persecution or discrimination — taking place. This figure amounts to approximately 65% of the global population.

During the time period covered by the report, only Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan showed any improvement, said the report.

The report labeled 24 countries as "persecution," the worst category. This means there are "grave and systemic violations, including violence, arrest, and repression."

A total of 4.1 billion people live in these countries, and in 18 of the 24 countries given this designation, the situation has worsened since the last report, said Aid to the Church in Need.

The source of the persecution — either the government or another group — is varied among the different states.

"The nature of persecution varies across different contexts. In eight countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Libya, Maldives, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan and Yemen — it results from a combination of authoritarian governance and religious extremism," said the report.

But in China, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Turkmenistan, the primary persecutor is "authoritarian state control," said the report.

"Another seven countries — Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Niger, Somalia, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo — are affected mainly by religious extremism," said Aid to the Church in Need.

In India and Myanmar, the driving forces of religious persecution are "a combination of authoritarianism and etho-religious nationalism."

An additional 38 countries were given the "discrimination" label, including Egypt, Ethiopia, Mexico, Turkey, and Vietnam.

This year, Mexico, Russia, and Ukraine were moved to the "discrimination" category due to an increase in violations of religious freedom.

In these countries, "religious minorities face legal, political, or social restrictions that limit their freedom of belief and worship," said the report.

"While not facing outright persecution, many individuals endure systematic discrimination, such as limited access to places of worship, constraints on religious expression, or unequal legal treatment," said ACN.

Similarly to the countries where persecution is occurring, the root of the discrimination varies in these countries as well. In 24 of the 38 countries, "authoritarianism" is identified as the most dominant factor behind religious discrimination.

"In Chad, discrimination is driven by religious extremism, while in Haiti and Mexico, it is linked to organized crime. Ethno-religious nationalism is the primary driver in Nepal," said the report.

The remaining 10 countries have a "combination of factors" that result in discrimination of religious minorities.

"In Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Syria and Thailand, a mix of authoritarian governance and religious extremism is present," said the report. "In Israel and Palestine, ethno-religious nationalism and extremism intersect to undermine religious freedom. In Sri Lanka, discrimination stems from both authoritarianism and ethno-religious nationalism."

A further 24 countries, including Belarus, Chile, Indonesia, and Kenya, are listed as "under observation," said Aid to the Church in Need.

"Though not currently experiencing significant persecution or discrimination, these nations show early warning signs such as growing authoritarianism, weakening legal safeguards, or rising religious intolerance," said the report.

The countries on this list, said the report, should be monitored and subjected to preventative action.