February 2009: Hands-on help

Hands-on help with Lifebuoy

A lack of basic hygiene causes a wide range of illnesses. Making good-quality products such as soap affordable and available to consumers is a crucial starting point, but products alone are often not enough if people do not change their habits.

Unilever's health and hygiene programmes harness the power of our marketing to change behaviour. By working with partners in government and non-government organisations we can extend our impact further.

Spreading the word

In India, Lifebuoy's handwashing awareness programme, Swasthya Chetna (Hindi for 'Health Awakening'), has now directly reached 120 million people across more than 50,000 villages in seven states.

The message of the programme is clear: handwashing with soap prevents life-threatening diseases, particularly diarrhoeal and respiratory infections. It focuses on rural communities, starting with schoolchildren - who are likely to spread the word to their families and communities.

Clean fun

The programme delivers a range of fun and engaging activities, including quizzes, games and songs. A popular feature is the 'glo-germ' demonstration kit, which shows up germs on the hands, even after they've been rinsed with water - proving that soap is essential to staying healthy.

"One of our key challenges was to convince people that even clean-looking hands can still harbour germs," explains Myriam Sidibe, Global Social Mission Manager for Lifebuoy. "Using tools such as the glo-germ kit, we're able to prove that germs are invisible to the naked eye - and that only soap is able to remove them."

But there is still more to do. "So far, we've done really well on getting the message out there, and our reach has been tremendous. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure our impact is even more effective," says Myriam.