Kuala Lumpur, 1 November 2021 – In conjunction with Global Handwashing Day on the 15th of October 2021, Lifebuoy Malaysia, through the Ministry of Education, donated RM1.8 million worth of hand hygiene products to support students returning to school after the prolonged National lockdown. With the country progressively re-opening sectors based on the National Recovery Plan, Lifebuoy Malaysia pledged to aid students returning to schools by providing hand sanitizers and bar soaps to be distributed to the students.
Lenny Chuah, Beauty Personal Care Marketing Director of Unilever Malaysia-Singapore shared that “For over a decade, Lifebuoy has always championed hand hygiene by running the world’s largest behaviour-change programme, to advocate for greater emphasis on hand hygiene education. As a company, Unilever Malaysia believes in the purpose of action. Working with the Ministry of Education for this donation, we are able to do our part in helping to keep the students venturing back to schools safe, as physical learning has been allowed. We understand the importance of bringing students back to school to help bring them a sense of normalcy back in their lives concerning their education. We have and will always prioritise working towards the betterment of our planet and society. Through this donation, we want to do our part in helping those most impacted by the Covid-19 situation by not only providing the tools to keep them safe but to also encourage good hand-hygiene maintenance”.
This year, Lifebuoy Malaysia had contributed a total of 250,000 units of Lifebuoy hand sanitizers and 69,696 units of bar soaps to be distributed by the Ministry of Education to schools all around Malaysia. The hand sanitizers will be distributed to the students in school while the bar soaps will be handed out to students from impoverished families. These products are meant to keep the students safe both at school and at home. Understanding how Covid-19 has affected society, this donation is meant to instil a sense of good hygiene and help minimise the risk of infection amongst the students.
At the same time, during the Global Handwashing Day, Lifebuoy Malaysia hosted two global supplementary initiatives to tie in their mission of helping people develop better handwashing habits, improve hygiene, and protect against illnesses. The global initiatives launched were the world’s largest virtual classroom and the H for Handwashing Alphabet Book, which intended to promote an enabling environment for the promotion and implementation of Handwashing as one of the strongest strategies against COVID-19.
The virtual classroom event began at 7.30 pm, Malaysia time, with teachers and parents from across the globe joining in. The event aimed to highlight the importance of handwashing and to remind participants of the first lesson ever taught to children – The Alphabet. The event reminded participants that while learning the ABCs, it is important to remember that the letter ‘H’ did not only apply to words such as Hat, Horse, or Hippo but also ‘H for Handwashing’. The event was intended to inculcate the habit of handwashing and its importance, especially with the Covid-19 situation. To stay safe and secure, the habit of handwashing should not be ignored even with the number of cases reducing and the easing of the restrictions. Visit https://youtu.be/ra3dYdDcwiA to watch the virtual classroom event.
H for Handwashing Alphabet Book on the other hand was launched to teach children the importance of handwashing in conjunction with Global Handwashing Day. It is believed that children as young as
between 3-5 years can be taught hygiene behaviours and the Alphabet Book’s objective is to teach children the importance of handwashing and good hand hygiene. The book is available to be downloaded for free at https://www.lifebuoyschoolof5.com/h-for-handwashing/.
“Behaviour change is fundamental to achieving the goals set out in the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, we have been committed to inspiring people to adopt everyday behaviour to improve the health and wellbeing of people. We are targeting to change the hygiene habits of one billion people including parents, school children, caregivers, and communities globally through the simplest practice of handwashing with soap as one of the most cost-effective ways to prevent hygiene-related health problems. In Malaysia, 480,000 children have been taught, encouraged, and inspired to practice good hand hygiene to date and we plan to continue working towards increasing that number in the coming years,” explained Chuah.
Global Handwashing Day is dedicated to increasing awareness about the importance of handwashing with soap to prevent diseases and save lives. Medical authorities have clearly stated that washing hands thoroughly and frequently with soap – or using sanitizer where soap and water are not available – is one of the most effective ways to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Through the donation, virtual class event, and H for Handwashing Alphabet Book launch, Lifebuoy continues to reiterate their vision of achieving a more hygienic, healthier, and ultimately more vital community.
“Good hygiene has always been at the forefront of Lifebuoy’s mission. As the global pandemic continues, good hygiene is more important than ever, especially to our communities and those most vulnerable. We understand the impact Covid-19 has inflicted on the community and we as a company will continue to do our part in ensuring that we live up to our mission of preventing illness and saving lives through handwashing with soap. We are looking forward to more collaboration opportunities with businesses across the country, and hope that our combined efforts are able to further support the Ministry of Education’s initiatives in improving the conditions for students returning to school. Lifebuoy is an organization with a strong sense of purpose, and we want to do our part to help protect students going back to school as we continue our journey on this important mission to make sustainable living commonplace”, concluded Chuah.
