Dettol, WBFA Empower Nigerian Children through Hygiene Education
Mary Nnah
In a bid to promote hygiene education and practices among school children, Dettol and the Wellbeing Foundation Africa (WBFA) have launched the third year of the Dettol Hygiene Quest Initiative.
The flag-off took place at Oduduwa Primary School, Gbagada, Lagos recently.
The Dettol Hygiene Quest curriculum, under the Dettol Clean Naija Initiative, aims to reach six million children by 2030, instilling lifelong hygiene habits by equipping them with essential lessons on handwashing and cleanliness and reducing absenteeism and hygiene-related diseases in children by 10 per cent.
Since its inception in 2013, the Dettol School Hygiene Programme, through which the Dettol Hygiene Quest curriculum is used, has made a lasting impact, transforming hygiene practices in schools, homes, and healthcare facilities across Nigeria.
Now in its third year with the WBFA, the programme has conducted programmes in Lagos, Kwara and Abuja in schools, hospitals and communities.
Over 269,758 school children have been taught the foundational principles of hygiene; 69,233 pregnant and lactating mothers have received evidence-based hygiene education; 32,928 community members have been empowered as health promoters within their households; and more than 2,300 healthcare workers have been trained to implement and sustain hygiene led care standards.
The programme has reported a 34 per cent decline in noticeable communicable diseases among students in Abuja; 22 per cent in Kwara, and 16 per cent in Lagos. Additionally, there has been a significant decrease in school absenteeism rates due to illness, with 40.91 per cent in Abuja; 16.01 per cent in Lagos, and 12.28 per cent in Kwara.
The Head of External Affairs and Partnerships for Reckitt Sub-Saharan Africa, Cassandra Uzo-Ogbugh, emphasised the importance of hygiene education in disease prevention and thanked partners for their collaboration.
“Now in its 13th year, and having educated over 7 million children since then, we are proud to see the great impact the school hygiene programme has delivered over the past years. With our implementation partners, the Wellbeing Foundation, we are proud of the impact in 2024.
She added that proper hand washing habits and wide-scale hygiene education can prevent many hygiene-related illnesses like diarrhoea and the flu. “I want to thank our partners, the Wellbeing Foundation, governments and facilitators across the states. As we commence the 2025 session of the Dettol School Hygiene Programme, we look forward to an even bigger positive impact on the health of our children and students, but we ask that everyone join in the fight to eradicate the prevalence of hygiene-related diseases.”
The founder and President of The Wellbeing Foundation Africa, Princess Toyin Ojora Saraki, emphasised the impact of the initiative, saying, “it is both an honour and a professional responsibility to mark the formal commencement of year three of the Wellbeing Foundation Africa Dettol Hygiene Quest Programme. Our task, as we open this next implementation cycle is threefold: to sustain the quality and coverage of the programme with professional discipline; to continue to expand the year count and geographical reach, recognising the increasing demand for community-based hygiene education that is standardised and evidence-aligned; and to ensure that our communication and advocacy fully reflect the complexity and ambition of this work.
“Public health is not advanced through proclamations alone, but through structured systems that educate, enable, and empower. The WBFA Dettol Hygiene Quest is one such system, and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that it endures, evolves, and delivers for the Nigerian children with us today, and generations.”
The event was a dynamic and engaging experience for the pupils, featuring interactive hand washing demonstrations, hygiene education sessions, and distribution of Dettol soaps and educational materials. As the event concluded, the sense of empowerment among the students was unmistakable. Beyond the knowledge imparted, they left with a newfound responsibility – to be hygiene ambassadors within their homes and communities. By equipping the next generation with essential hygiene knowledge, Dettol and WBFA are fostering a cultural shift that ensures better health and wellbeing for years to come.
