‘State of the Rhino’ Report Celebrates World Rhino Day, Highlights 2025 as Major Year for Rhino Policy

Rhinos in Focus at CITES Conference, World Conservation Congress

The International Rhino Foundation’s (IRF) “State of the Rhino” report, released today, details threats from poaching and the illegal horn trade and spotlights upcoming rhino conservation and policy opportunities ahead of World Rhino Day on September 22. 

The report includes comprehensive recommendations from IRF for rhino range states and the international community to help ensure rhinos survive and, hopefully, thrive well into the future.

Access the report here: State of the Rhino | International Rhino FoundationInternational Rhino Foundation

“All five rhino species are at risk and urgently need support,” said Nina Fascione, executive director of the International Rhino Foundation. “We must shape rhino conservation for the next decade. To see rhinos thrive, we need to halt poaching, investigate and prosecute horn trafficking syndicates, restore habitat and strengthen the small, fragmented populations where most rhinos live.” 

This year, the 20th Conference of the Parties (CoP) of signatories to CITES – the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora – will allow experts to review global rhino conservation efforts. At the CoP, IRF will co-facilitate a panel discussion with rhino conservation, wildlife trade and law enforcement experts, as well as representatives from rhino range states affected by the illegal rhino horn trade. This side event can help shape the narrative around rhino conservation at CoP20 and influence decisions related to trade and enforcement.

Additionally, the 2025 World Conservation Congress includes a motion to focus attention and resources on securing the remaining populations of Critically Endangered Sumatran and Javan rhinos in Indonesia. The motion encourages the Government of Indonesia to aim for rapid population growth through scientific management and calls on donors to provide adequate financial resources to help enable the recovery of these important ecosystem engineers. 

The total global population of rhinos is approximately 26,700. The 2025 numbers, collected and provided by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, indicate a gain of roughly 430 rhinos globally since the last official count in 2022, when there were about 26,270 rhinos. 

Highlights from the State of the Rhino report include:

• Black rhinos have increased to 6,788 from the last count of 6,195 in 2022.
• The number of Indonesia’s Javan rhinos has dropped due to poaching.
• By the end of 2024, the number of white rhinos in Africa fell to 15,752, down from 17,464 in 2023. 
• Greater one-horned rhinos have been making use of improved habitats and wildlife corridors, and their numbers have increased to 4,075 from 4,014.
• Median rhino populations in South Africa are well below recommended numbers, meaning that many rhino populations are too small to be considered reproductively and genetically viable.
• A new tracking tool could help monitor rhinos whose horns were trimmed to deter poaching.

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The International Rhino Foundation (IRF) manages, facilitates and funds conservation initiatives for highly threatened rhino populations in Africa and Asia. Established in 1993, IRF focuses on scientific research, fighting poaching, habitat and population management, conservation breeding, community development and capacity building, demand reduction and legal training and support to fight illegal wildlife trade. In the past decade, IRF has invested more than $25 million in rhino conservation and research. Learn more at rhinos.org.