Primark
A UNICEF partner since 2018
Primark has partnered with UNICEF since 2018 to promote inclusive learning for children around the world, with a focus on children with disabilities or from marginalised communities. The company has committed over $12 million to UNICEF through grants and emergency donations.
Primark and UNICEF: The first three years
From 2018 to 2021, Primark donated more than $6 million to support UNICEF’s work in education and emergency responses. As part of the commitment, $4.5 million was allocated to UNICEF’s education programmes in Cambodia to enable 100,000 children with disabilities or from marginalised communities to attend and stay in school. The funding included school sanitation facilities through UNICEF’s water, sanitation and hygiene programme, as well as training for teachers to assure that children can learn and grow in a healthy environment with the right hygiene practices.
The remainder $1.5 million was donated to UNICEF’s emergency response operations worldwide, offering humanitarian support to communities devastated by natural disasters, including the tsunami in Indonesia in 2018 and the cyclone in Mozambique in 2019, as well as contributing to UNICEF’s initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Renewed commitment
In 2021, Primark renewed its support with an additional $6 million to help UNICEF provide over 800,000 children in India and Sri Lanka with access to meaningful education in a safe, clean and inclusive environment. In the long term, these funds will enable UNICEF to build and scale these programmes, with the potential to benefit more than 4 million children in Sri Lanka through a nationwide roll-out of the successful models.
“We are proud to be a long-term partner of UNICEF since 2018,” said Paul Marchant, Primark’s Chief Executive Officer. “Better educated communities have the skills, knowledge and tools they need to tackle inequalities, and our work with UNICEF ensures that vulnerable children have access to education. I have seen first-hand the positive impact of these efforts in strengthening communities in Cambodia, and I am delighted that our renewed commitment will now provide much needed funds to improve the lives of children in India and Sri Lanka.”
In 2022, Primark was an early responder to UNICEF’s emergency appeal for Ukraine, donating $300,000 to support UNICEF in scaling up life-saving efforts in the region.
About Primark
Primark is an international clothing retailer employing more than 70,000 colleagues across 15 countries in Europe and the US. Founded in Ireland in 1969 under the Penneys brand, Primark aims to provide affordable choices for everyone, from great quality everyday essentials to stand-out style across women’s, men’s and kid’s, as well as beauty, homeware and accessories. With a focus on creating great retail experiences in-store, Primark continues to expand across new and existing markets with the aim of reaching 530 stores by the end of 2026, including the upcoming new market of Slovakia.
Primark is working to make more sustainable fashion affordable for everyone. Primark Cares is its commitment to doing better, every day - making more sustainable products everyone can afford, reducing its impact on the planet and improving the lives of workers. It has made a series of public commitments it plans to work towards and report on progress each year. These include making all its clothes from recycled or more sustainably sourced materials, ensuring clothing is recyclable by design, halving carbon emissions across the value chain and pursuing a living wage for workers in the supply chain. You can find out about these commitments, and much more, here.
UNICEF does not endorse any brand, company, product or service.
Last updated 12 January 2022
