Persil Joins HeForShe to Advance Gender Equality and Shared Responsibility at Home
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UN Women and Henkel launched their new partnership under the HeForShe movement at the "House of Persil" in Düsseldorf, Germany. Photo: Henkel
UN Women Europe and Central Asia and Henkel, represented by Persil have launched a new partnership under the HeForShe movement, bringing together the private sector and global advocacy efforts to challenge gender stereotypes and promote a more equal sharing of unpaid care and domestic work.
The partnership was officially launched at the “House of Persil” in Düsseldorf, Germany, where more than 200 participants from 15 countries gathered to explore the theme “Equality Begins at Home.” Through interactive experiences and discussions, the event highlighted the role that everyday household responsibilities play in shaping broader gender inequalities.
The partnership comes at a critical moment. Across Europe and Central Asia, women and girls perform more than 3.4 times as many hours of unpaid care and domestic work per day as men, limiting their opportunities for education, paid employment, leadership, leisure and participation in public life.
Speaking at the launch, Elisa Fernandez Saenz, UN Women Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, emphasized the importance of engaging the private sector in advancing gender equality.
"The private sector has the power to reshape norms at scale. By sharing care more equally, we unlock women’s time as well as their ability to pursue further education, careers and self-care. This is about women’s rights, but also about building stronger economies and more equal societies. Gender equality is for everyone, and it will only be achieved if everyone takes part.”
Elisa Fernandez Saenz, UN Women Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia
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Through the partnership, Persil will use its platforms and consumer reach to encourage conversations around the unequal distribution of household work and inspire men to take a more active role in everyday domestic responsibilities. The collaboration aligns with UN Women’s broader efforts to elevate care as a critical gender equality, economic and social issue, including through the recently launched Europe and Central Asia Care Action Agenda 2026–2030.
The event brough together more than 200 participants from 15 countries gathered to explore the theme “Equality Begins at Home.” Photo: Henkel
“Laundry is part of almost every household, and yet it is still far from equally shared,” said Zsuzsanna Szak. “With our ‘Equality Begins at Home’ initiative, we want to use our voice to make shared responsibility more visible and help turn it into a normal part of everyday life.”
By joining HeForShe, Persil becomes part of a growing movement of companies, institutions and individuals working to engage men and boys as partners for gender equality and help create a future where care responsibilities are recognized, valued and shared more equally.
Through partnerships such as this, UN Women Europe and Central Asia continues to work with the private sector to transform social norms, promote shared responsibility for care, and accelerate progress towards gender equality for all women and girls.
