In celebration of Global Handwashing Day, Lifebuoy is taking a dynamic and interactive approach to engage children in handwashing activities, emphasising the importance of proper hygiene practices. This annual event, celebrated worldwide on 15th October, is a day dedicated to promoting handwashing with soap as an essential and cost-effective way to prevent diseases and save lives.
Under the theme ‘Reimagining hygiene through the power of play’, Lifebuoy launched the 2023 Global Handwashing Day campaign at the Services Basic School at Burma Camp in Accra on Friday, 13th October. The campaign fuses education and entertainment in recognising that children are the torchbearers of change in public health, and has designed a series of engaging games and activities that make learning about hand hygiene fun and exciting.
The event also saw the launch of the ‘H for Handwashing Games Kit’, which repurposed existing games that would help to reinforce the message of hand hygiene. The children had the opportunity to participate in these games and educational activities such as Germs and Ladders and Handwashing Ludo. These games not only instil the importance of hand hygiene, but also allow children to become champions of good handwashing practices.
Mr. Joel Boateng, Customer Development Director of Unilever Ghana PLC, shared the inspiration behind this innovative approach. “This day is extremely important to our flagship hygiene brand, Lifebuoy, and at the core of the brand’s purpose lies our unwavering mission to inspire and foster good hygiene habits that last a lifetime. Lifebuoy is dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the importance of handwashing with soap and water to stay healthy and prevent the spread of germs.”
He added: “At Unilever, we are driven by our purpose to make sustainable living commonplace, and we believe that people with purpose thrive, brands with purpose grow, and companies with purpose last”.
Last year, Lifebuoy launched the remarkable ‘H for Handwashing’ campaign, led by the Lifebuoy Chief Education Officers. They employed peer-to-peer learning to inspire their fellow students to adopt regular handwashing and other hygienic practices. This will continue for another year.
Mrs. Patricia Dovi Sampson, Director of General Administration at the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, said at the event: “Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, we have consistently emphasised the importance of hygiene, especially handwashing with soap under running water. I am truly impressed by how such a simple action has played a significant role in reducing COVID-19 cases in Ghana”.
She added: “Today, children spend more time immersed in screens of all shapes and sizes and hardly play games like we did in our times. This is why I am particularly excited about Lifebuoy’s approach in engaging children through games. It will invariably foster greater interaction among peers and enhance their thinking capacity, while imparting essential hygienic practices, especially handwashing”.
The introduction of this exciting new method to sustain this momentum. The introduction of interactive games to promote handwashing is a delightful addition. Research from the Games Journal has shown that games have the power to instil behavioural change in children, encouraging them to make positive health choices, thanks to the entertainment value they offer.
Lifebuoy believes that teaching children the importance of handwashing is not just about imparting knowledge, but instilling lifelong habits that can protect their health and well-being. The campaign is about turning an essential hygiene practice into an adventure. By making it fun, children are more likely to adopt these habits and share them with their families and friends, thereby creating a ripple-effect of positive change in communities.
