Global Handwashing Day: Dettol intensifies “Give Life A Hand” campaign

Dettol is intensifying its ”Give Life A Hand” campaign to commemorate the Global Handwashing Day 2015 which aims to ensure that handwashing becomes an instilled behaviour among Nigerians youth

The Managing Director, Reckitt Benckiser (RB), Rahul Murgai, said while nearly 0.7million children die due to diarrhoea, hand-washing with soap can help prevent diarrhea-related diseases and other disease spread by touch as well as respiratory infections including pneumonia and flu.

He said that our vision in RB is a world where people are healthier and live better and our purpose is to make a difference by giving people innovative solutions for healthier lives and happier homes. Our brand Dettol has been in Nigeria for more than 50 years, always has been at the forefront of providing health and hygiene solutions to Nigerians

He said in Nigeria alone 96,000 deaths occur. “We can help prevent this by making hand washing with soap a habit for children,” he noted

The Marketing Director, Dettol West Africa, Oguzhan Silivrili, requested all to show their support this Global Hand Washing Day by uploading a picture of clean hands with the hashtag #HealthyHands.

He said further Dettol’s idea is to work towards a larger purpose of saving lives with innovative and engaging initiatives.

“The promise was to educate a child about the benefits of Handwashing through unique digital interaction with our consumers on different digital platforms like Facebook , Twitter and Instagram. The Idea was to create an engaging interactive platform involving mothers to reach out to more people. We can truly make a difference with the help of the mothers if they can spread out the message of the necessity of Handwashing to their loved ones,” he said.

Representative of the Global Hygiene Council, Dr. Nneoma Idika appreciated this gesture and called for good hand hygiene practices to be embeded as a sure way to live healthy and safe lives. ‘Handwashing is the most effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhea and acute respiratory infections, which claim the lives of millions of children every year. This is why the culture of handwashing with soap like Dettol soap be embraced’ Dr. Nneoma stated.

To flag off the campaign, an ultra-modern handwash site was commissioned at Bola Memorial Primary School, Ikeja, Lagos in commemoration of the 2015 Global Handwashing Day.

This handwash site which features a 24-man capacity ultra-modern handwash booth also has the Dettol Six Steps of Handwashing boldly illustrated to always guide pupils while washing their hands. In addition, Dettol will also provide a 1-year dispatch of Dettol soap for the pupils of the school to encourage the Handwashing culture.

Several Celebrities including Helen Paul, Omoni Oboli, Noble Iguwe and Eku Edewor were at the event to amplify the message of Handwashing with soap and show their support for Dettol. Radio Personalities, Inspiration FM Wana and Top FM, Tosyn Bukcnor were also present to lend their voice to the campaign.