How ‘Empowering Girls’ is creating a more inclusive society
With ‘International Day of the Girl’ taking place on October 11th, 2021, we are providing further insights into our empowerment partnerships with CARE and Plan International, as well as the expansion our mission into Europe with Ashoka.
‘International Day of the Girl’ has been a United Nations (UN) day of action since 2011, drawing attention to the disadvantages faced by girls worldwide. With this year’s slogan being ‘My Voice, Our Equal Future’, global skincare company Beiersdorf is taking the opportunity to demonstrate the progress made by its social projects for girls and young women.
Starting in 2020, Beiersdorf’s partnerships with non-governmental organizations CARE, Plan International and Ashoka were implemented with the common mission of ‘Empowering Girls’. Much progress has been made in the months since, which we are very proud to share today.
“For Beiersdorf the vision of an inclusive society plays an important role in our Sustainability Agenda, CARE BEYOND SKIN. Empowering girls and fostering systemic change is at the heart of it.” states Jean-Francois Pascal, Vice President Corporate Sustainability at Beiersdorf AG.
Christiane Hölscher, Global CSR Manager at Beiersdorf AG adds: “We are committed to investing in a sustainable and diverse world by empowering girls. It is our contribution to foster a cohesive society, where girls play an important role. Thanks to our trusted long-term partnerships with Plan International, CARE and now also with Ashoka, we can make a real difference.”
Girls are among the most vulnerable
The world is home to more than 1.1 billion girls under the age of 18. But nearly one in four girls aged 15 to 19 years is neither employed nor in education or training, compared to one in ten boys of the same age. In 2021, around 435 million women and girls are living on less than $1.90 a day*. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the situation — especially food insecurity and the risk of malnutrition, but also with a rise in sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) that has worsened the living conditions for girls in many countries around the world.**
Expansion of ‘Empowering Girls’ mission to Europe
Acknowledging these challenges throughout Europe, too, Beiersdorf has expanded its ‘Empowering girls’ mission to the region in partnership with Ashoka. Its key aim is to support leading female social entrepreneurs who drive impactful systemic solutions to key challenges in their field. Five Ashoka Fellows will be supported with donations that support their work empowering girls and women during the Covid-19 crisis and beyond.
The Ashoka Fellows will help to eradicate violence against women, overcome gender stereotypes, empower girls to dream big and work towards a new economy with gender equity allowing for new perspectives in the workplace. The five chosen are based in Switzerland, Poland, Italy, Belgium and the UK respectively and are part of the global network of 3,800 social entrepreneurs in more than 90 countries. What’s s more, the Ashoka network will bring together a larger group of female social entrepreneurs from Europe to build bridges within and leverage their strategies for social change. All of the social entrepreneurs involved are part of the global network of 3,800 social entrepreneurs in more than 90 countries.
First strong successes with CARE
CARE, operating in 104 countries worldwide and reaching over 92 million people in need each year, is providing strong support for Beiersdorf’s ‘Empowering Girls’ mission. The goal: strengthen equitable and qualitative health services and increase the economic resilience of girls and young women. Since the start of 2021, four projects have been set up in Dire Dawa/Ethiopia, Western Region of Kenya (Kakamega and Bungoma Counties), Afgoi/Somalia and Kassala State/Sudan. In their first three months, CARE and Beiersdorf were able to reach around 50,000 people both directly and indirectly with hygiene messaging, economic support and other interventions.
Partnership with Plan International fully on track
Our cooperation with the non-governmental organization (NGO) Plan International is also fully on track. Plan International has been active in more than 50 developing countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America since 1937. For more than 15 years, the NGO has been working in girls’ support, and alongside Beiersdorf it is involved in six projects to restore access to quality education, provide information on domestic violence and offer adolescent women help and access to protection services. The projects have been running in Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil (Latin-America) since October 2020 and in Kenya, Ghana, and Nigeria (Africa) since February 2021.
Some further examples of our success
In Bogotá, Columbia,18,351 people have benefited since the project started, while in Quito and Guayaquil in Ecuador, 20,588 people were reached with this initiative. Plan Ecuador developed field activities, such as training sessions on sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence, founded youth clubs and provided first cash transfers for the most vulnerable families.
We celebrate this progress, because girls and young women have profound importance both to us and to our societies. To quote UN Secretary-General António Guterres: “Girls can be powerful agents of change, and nothing should keep them from participating fully in all areas of life.”
Find out more about our ‘Empowering Girls’ mission
Find out more about Beiersdorf
Find out more about Plan International
Find out more about CARE
Find out more about Ashoka
