by Kolapo Olapoju

 

Nollywood actress, Patience Ozokwor, popularly known as Mama G, was at Chrisland School, Ikeja, on Friday, February 6, to help Dettol commence the fresh round of visits to schools to educate pupils and teachers on the benefits of hand hygiene.

In a bid to promote a healthy lifestyle and reduce abstention of pupils from school owing to sicknesses, Dettol, the leading anti-germ health and hygiene brand from the stables of Reckitt Benckiser, started the ‘Dettol School Hygiene Programme (SHP)’ initiative.

The initiative is targeted at driving home the key message of proper handwashing culture as the most cost-effective strategy to reduce potential death-causing illnesses such as diarrhea and other respiratory diseases often caused by germs and poor hygiene.

 

The SHP train berthed at Chrisland School during the school’s inter-house sports competition with Dettol Brand Ambassador, Patience Ozokwor , leading the interactive campaign.

Through the deployment of audio-visual kits and memorable sing-along songs, the students fully participated in the do-it-yourself six steps of effective handwashing, and they commended Dettol for the initiative.

While encouraging the students, parents and teachers to imbibe the culture of regular handwashing in order to live healthy and be active, Ozokwor reminded them that germs posed serious danger to human health and they could cause illnesses such as diarrhea, flu, fever, cough and catarrh in addition to avoidable death.

Ozokwor said: “Nothing else compares to having good health. We are unhappy when we or our loved ones fall sick; we go through pains and unable to go about our regular activities. Germs are found everywhere; on the playground, in toilets and in trash can. It is therefore important that after we play with friends or use the toilet or trash rubbish, we must wash our hands properly with Dettol soap and clean water.”

Speaking on the significance of the Dettol School Hygiene Programme, the Marketing Director, West Africa, Reckitt Benckiser, Mr. Oguzhan Silivrili, implored Nigerians to embrace standard solutions such as regular handwashing as one of the cost-effective ways to protect themselves and loved ones against illness-causing germs.

“Solutions that do not protect from all 100 types of germs are substandard and we at Reckitt Benckiser advocate that people do not protect themselves with substandard solutions but with gold standard solution. Dettol is the only antibacterial brand which has been proven to protect from up to 100 illness causing germs which is why we advocate that Nigerians do not take a risk with the lives of their loved ones but rather, adopt the gold standard kind of protection they can get – Dettol,” Siliviri said.

Silivrili added that the SHP was one of the numerous platforms put in place by Dettol to help Nigerians to live healthier life as well as empower them to remain active at all times. He said over 3 million children across Nigeria have been reached with the message of handwashing since the inception of the programme in 2009.

On his part, the Marketing Manager, West Africa, Reckitt Benckiser, Mr. Ahmed Shah, stated that “Dettol has been reaching Nigerians with different grassroots activities such as the School Hygiene SHP,  the New Mum Programmes (NMP) which has also reached approximately 5 million new mums in the hospitals since inception and Health On Wheels (HOW) which is a mobile clinic.

“Over the years of having these programmes, we do not sell products to targets, rather, we enlighten them, give them brochures to help them recall hygiene messages and we give them free products.   All of these programmes form the pillar of this Campaign and are conveying one singular message of upholding best hygiene practices.”

Shah said further that, “For the School Hygiene Programme (SHP), we believe that the formative age is the best time to inculcate the habit of good hygiene practice in a person; this is the reason we have chosen to work closely with schools pan-Nigeria to empower the children with hygiene messages so as they grow older, it remains a part of them and they can pass it on to generations after them.”

Commenting on the initiative, the Sectional Head, Gopherwood School, Lagos, Michael Dairo, commended Reckitt Benckiser for being innovative. “Dettol visits our school often and this has really enlightened the pupils on how to wash their hands.  Whenever they go to the toilet or after playing on the ground, you see them rush to the tap to wash their hands with Dettol soap. It’s a part of them now,” he said.

The Head Teacher, The Royal Masters School, Ikeja, Mrs. Olanrewaju Anugo, also affirmed the positive impact which the programme has had on the pupils, saying: “Ever since Dettol started educating our pupils to embrace proper hygiene culture, there has been drastic reduction in the number of visit to the sickbay and pupil abstention from school on the ground of sickness. Dettol has gone a long way in ensuring that the pupils and the entire society are conscious of their health.”