UNICEF Global Handwashing Day: Almost One Million Dirhams Donation to Fund School Sanitation Projects

UNICEF and Dettol announced today that they have raised approximately one million Dirhams (a quarter of a million dollars) by their first ever joint campaign in time for this year’s Global Handwashing Day (October 15).

Mr. Simon Cooke, General Manager of Reckitt Benckiser – the company behind Dettol – handed a cheque to Ms. Lara Hussein, Chief of Child Protection & Officer in Charge for UNICEF Gulf Area Office.

The money was raised thanks to thousands of UAE and Middle East consumers who have purchased special packs of Dettol products during July, August and September 2010. The campaign saw Dettol donating 5.9 per cent of the value of every purchase of specially branded packs of its antibacterial soap, hand wash and shower gel to the campaign.

Targeting countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Levant, UNICEF and Dettol joined hands to launch this initiative with the objective of providing essential sanitation, hand-washing facilities, and access to safe water for 300,000 underprivileged schoolchildren in Malawi.

“First and foremost, we would like to thank UNICEF for giving us the opportunity to be part of this incredible campaign,” said Mr. Cooke. “Second, we would like to thank our loyal customers for their generosity and their selflessness.”

As well as providing sanitation and handwashing facilities, the programme in Malawi will educate children and teachers on hygiene practices to guard against illness and the unnecessary spread of disease and infection; helping to improve educational opportunities for thousands of children.

Ms. Hussein said: “We are very glad to have initiated such a campaign, and we hope to use today and Global Handwashing Day as an opportunity to bring focus to the under-discussed subject of hand hygiene and the importance of access to sanitation in preventing illness. It is alarming to know that the bare essentials of good hygiene, such as safe water and soap, necessities that we usually take for granted, are unavailable to these children.“

Ms. Hussein also added, “This is the first step to our campaign; now the actual implementation work will begin. Over the next few weeks, our UNICEF representatives in Malawi will ensure the on-ground work is being executed. They will also work very closely with our partners across the region to establish a supply of safe water and much needed sanitation to over 500 schools across 1,500 communities.”