100,000 euros collected for 3,000 sleeping places in the Caritas mother-child homes

This year, BIPA and P&G once again sent a strong signal against poverty among women and children in need in support of the Caritas initiative #wirtun. Because the long-lasting effects of the Corona crisis and the Ukraine war are still strongly felt, especially by mothers. Together with their children, they reach their limits in times like these, further increasing the number of women at risk of poverty. In order to give courage and confidence to all the mothers affected and to enable new opportunities, BIPA and P&G have supported the 9 Caritas mother-child houses in Austria for the fifth time this year. This unbureaucratic help for women and children in crisis situations has been an important part of the corporate culture of BIPA and P&G for many years.

Numerous consumers also made a contribution by purchasing a pack of the P&G brands Always, Ariel, Braun, Fairy, Gillette Venus, Pampers, Pantene and Oral-B. With every product sold between 21 April and 18 May, the donation pot was filled by 0.10 euros. In order to reach the joint donation target of 100,000 euros again this year, BIPA and P&G increased the donation per product sold on top. Thus, the campaign was once again brought to a successful conclusion.

Markus Geyer, CEO of BIPA: "We have been supporting Caritas for many years with various aid projects, such as the initiative 'Aufrunder bewirken Wunder'. We are particularly proud of the #Mütterhelfen fundraising campaign, which has already been successfully implemented for the fifth time. We are pleased that the long-standing partnership with P&G and Caritas makes a big difference every year and that we can support mothers and their children with it."

"For millions of women in Austria, our products are a daily touchpoint. As one of the largest consumer goods manufacturers, we see it as a self-evident duty to help those who are in need of assistance in direct emergency situations," says Christian Zimlich, Country Manager P&G Austria, and adds: "We are proud that we have once again been able to achieve such success as part of our #Mütternhelfen fundraising campaign together with our long-standing partner BIPA. Especially in these challenging times, it is a special concern for us to support Caritas in their great work."

Poverty in Austria is female: Over 500,000 women are affected

1.29 million Austrians are at risk of poverty, more than half of them are women (526,000) and children (320,000).[1] The reasons for poverty are low income, lack of insurance periods in old age due to childcare and care work, and a large pension gap. Single-parent households have the highest risk of poverty or exclusion of all household types, with a rate of 47%, and in Austria these are predominantly single women with their children.[2] The situation has been exacerbated in recent years by the Corona pandemic: in systemically important, very female-dominated economic sectors such as commerce and care, women have had to cope with an increased workload and have been fully exposed to the risk of the virus - in contrast to many people in the home office. Other female-dominated work sectors such as tourism or catering, on the other hand, were characterised by lockdowns and short-time work. The associated financial losses hit women particularly hard: Thus, in 2020, the labour market saw a strong increase in unemployment (10.3 % compared to the previous year). It rose more for women (11.9%) than for men (9.1%).[3

"With our mother-child houses, we want to offer women and children in need a place of support and a temporary home to give them a fresh start in a safe environment," says Klaus Schwertner, gf Caritas Director of the Archdiocese of Vienna. "The need for donations for this important help throughout Austria is enormous. That is why we are very grateful for the reliable support of our committed partners. Together with the customers of P&G and BIPA, we are able to give confidence and hope to homeless mothers and children every year.

In its 9 mother-child houses in Austria, Caritas helps homeless mothers and children to build a secure long-term future. In emergency situations - whether due to violence or poverty - women with children are particularly in need of quick and unbureaucratic help. In the mother-child houses, mothers and children not only receive a protective roof over their heads, they are also provided with daily necessities, supported in finding a job and can access a variety of therapy and counselling services. The goal is to support women on their way back to a self-determined and independent life.

#Mütternhelfen is one of the 21 projects that Procter & Gamble is supporting as part of #GemeinsamStärker in 2022. In order to inform as many people as possible about the initiative and to call for donations, the social media channels of numerous partners and influencers, such as Marina Hörmanseder and Bianca Schwarzjirg, were integrated into the campaign again this year.

Sources:
[1] Statistik Austria (2022): Tabellenband EU-SILC 2021, S.82
[2] Statistik Austria (2022): Tabellenband EU-SILC 2021, S.128
[3] Bericht Gleichstellungskennzahlen AMS 2021