In Nigeria 200,000 children under the age of five die every year due to Diarrhoea. 88 per cent of diarrhoeal deaths could be attributed to unsafe water, poor sanitation and hygiene.
Once again Dettol realising the importance of continuing these efforts in Nigeria is embarking on a 21 days campaign on the Global Hand Washing day, where they will reach people all over Nigeria with the message of washing their hands regularly for 21 days. Why 21 days because popular belief is that’s the time it takes to build a habit.
More over in order to increase participation of kids and families and make the habit of hand washing enjoyable Dettol has launched its Sound of Health Sound track which encourages children to wash and keep good hygiene to prevent illnesses
(Visit: http://www.dettolghd.com/ for details of content and Participation)
During these 21 days, Dettol will use its new ‘‘21 Days to a ‘Healthy Hands’ Habit campaign to intensify the hand hygiene awareness campaign using various media platforms such as out of home types comprising branded BRT buses, digital billboards as well as print and electronic media . These are all in addition to an interactive theme song which has been produced to promote the campaign.
Hand washing with soap is one of the world’s most cost-effective preventive health interventions and has been proven to reduce the risk of not only diarrhoea, but also some of its more severe manifestations, such as cholera and dysentery, by 48-59 percent. Regular hand washing with soap has also recently been shown to reduce pneumonia infections by 25% and levels of school absenteeism by between 20 and 50 per cent
Dettol has been at the forefront of providing Health and Hygiene messages via its products to Nigeria for the last 50 years. The company’s vision is to have a world where people are healthier and live better.
In a similar stride Dettol has been conducting mass programs to make a difference to the lives of Nigerians through the following initiatives:
New Mum Program where they have reached 5 million moms since 2006 teaching them good hygiene habits for themselves and their new born babies;
The Health on Wheels Program where they have reached 150, 000 families through mobile clinics;
School Hand Hygiene Program in which they have reached almost a million kids this year across schools in Nigeria while a total of 3 million kids have been reached since they started the programme in 2009.
According to Reckitt Benckiser, many more Nigerians will be exposed to the message of regular hand washing thereby increasing mass awareness on the immense benefits of hand hygiene.
Commenting on the “21 Days to a ‘Healthy Hands Habit with Dettol” campaign, representative of the National President, Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Martins Momoh commended Reckitt Benckiser for the innovative concept. He said the adoption of a healthy hands habit through regular hand wash with soap and water will go a long way in combating many diseases that are caused by germs.
Also speaking, Deputy Director (Laboratory Services), Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Oyebanji Oyenuga affirmed that incidence of communicable diseases in Nigeria and elsewhere will drastically reduce when people imbibe the habit of hand washing with soap and water.
“As a laboratory scientist of over 30 years, I can confidently say that the importance of regular hand washing with soap and water cannot be over-emphasized because the unseen germs that cause diseases in human body are real.” He noted that the campaign is well focused, and pledged the readiness of the federal ministry to partner with the company in any area it may desire.
Speaking in similar vein, the Director, Press and Public Relations, Special Duties Office of Secretary to the Government of Federation, Mrs Philomena Oshodin applauded Reckitt Benckiser and its flagship Dettol brand for blazing the trail in hand hygiene advocacy. She thanked the company for its unrelenting commitment to good health in Nigeria.
“Your efforts are in line with the Millennium Development Goals part of which is to reduce maternal and infant mortality. With this kind of initiative, your support to government towards eradicating diseases and building a strong, healthy nation is immense. Thank you for the wonderful job that you are doing. We will certainly let government know what your company is doing”, she said.
Speaking at the media conference to unveil the campaign in Lagos, Ashok Bhasin, Managing Director, Reckitt Benckiser Nigeria Limited/General Manager, Reckitt Benckiser Central Africa Region, said the 21 days’ target is predicated on the research finding on human behaviour and attitudinal change to the effect that it takes a period of 21 days of consistently doing a particular thing to make it a habit.
‘‘Interestingly, the main focus of the hand washing campaign is to educate the children, who are the ‘agents of change’ to cultivate the habit of hand washing.
Dettol, the world’s no.1 antiseptic brand is renowned for protecting millions of families from germs globally. With its passion and commitment to health and hygiene, the 21 Days to a ‘Healthy Hands’ Habit with Dettol will further go a long way in improving the hand hygiene situation of millions of household in Nigeria and significantly help to reduce death arising from preventable diseases.
