The Dettol Hygiene Quest curriculum, a key component of the Dettol Clean Naija Initiative, is strategically designed to reach six million children by 2030, with the dual aims of cultivating lifelong hygiene habits through essential lessons on handwashing and cleanliness, and achieving a ten percent reduction in both school absenteeism and hygiene-related diseases affecting children.
Since its inception in 2013, the Dettol School Hygiene Program 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.
Speaking at the event, Cassandra Uzo-Ogbugh, Head of External Affairs and Partnerships for Reckitt Sub-Saharan Africa, stated,
“Hygiene education is the cornerstone of disease prevention, and through our continued collaboration with the Wellbeing Foundation Africa, we are making a tangible impact in fostering sustainable hygiene habits. 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 program has delivered over the past years. With our implementation partners, the Wellbeing Foundation, we are proud of the impact in 2024; they include: In noticeable communicable diseases, a 34%, 22% and 16% decrease among students in Abuja, Kwara, and Lagos state, respectively. In the area of school absenteeism rate due to any illness, there was a 40.91%, 16.01% and 12.28% decrease in Abuja, Lagos and Kwara respectively.”
She continued 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 Program, 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”;, she said.
“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 Program. 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 (third), 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.
