Experts have advocated hand washing as a panacea to prevent infections.
Managing Director of Reckitt Benckiser West Africa (RB), makers of Dettol, Rahul Murgai, noting that about 4,000 children die daily from diarrhoea, said: “At RB, our global vision is to provide the world with innovative solutions and products for health’’.
RB, last Thursday, donated a hand washing site and borehole to the United Christian Nursery and Primary school, Apapa, Lagos, to mark the 2016 global hand washing day.
“Dettol has been the trusted champion for good health and hygiene for over 50 years in Nigeria and we believe it’s important to inculcate good habits at an early age. A simple act of washing the hands with soap can prevent illness and diarrhoea-related deaths if we truly want to achieve the millennium development goal of a clean and healthy Nigeria.
“The Global hand washing day gives us the opportunity to leverage a larger eco-system and an awareness platform to achieve this objective.”
Marketing Director Aliza Leferink said “the donation of the hand wash site and borehole was to enable the pupils and teachers cultivate proper hand washing habits that would ultimately reduce the risk of infections.
“Hand washing with soap can be seen as a ‘do-it-yourself’ solution against preventable diseases because it is easy, effective, and affordable.”
Education Secretary, Apapa Local Government Education Authority, Dosumu Olabanji, thanked RB for the initiative.
Olabanji, who noted that the council has been holding talks and seminars on the importance of good hygiene, urged the children to cultivate regular hand washing as a habit.
The donation was made in collaboration with the Apapa zone of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN).