Harpic Promotes Hygienic Living With Awareness Campaign

Safe,
clean and hygienic toilet has been identified as one of the fundamental ways of
preventing diseases and reducing vulnerability and exposure of women to harm
and dangers. The General Manager, Reckitt Benckiser, Mr. Rahul Murgai Silivrili
stated this as Nigeria marked its first World Toilet Day (WTD) on Thursday, November
19.

The
awareness campaign becomes necessary following the United Nations figure that
2.5 billion people globally do not have access to proper sanitation, including
toilets or latrines, with dramatic consequences on human health, dignity and
security, the environment, and social and economic development. In Nigeria,
about 34 million people do not have access to clean toilets.

With
the theme “Clean Toilets, Healthy Homes”, this year’s WTD put on the front
burner the importance of having access to clean toilets and the potential
health implications as well as the vulnerability it poses especially to women
and children. Harpic – a stain removal liquid soap from the stable of Reckitt
Benckiser and the market leader in health, hygiene and home care products – was
at the forefront in the celebration of the day in the country.

This has long-term impacts on women’s health,
education, livelihoods and safety but it also impacts the economy, as failing to provide for the sanitation needs
of women ultimately risks excluding half of the potential workforce. According to research, only 30% of Nigerians have access
to Flush toilets while 20% still have no latrines as such are more prone to
open defecation.

With
the tagline ‘CleanHygenicToiletsWithHarpic’ the
toilet Day was used to inspire action and underscore the urgency to maintain
sanitary hygiene. It was also a gathering of policy makers in health sector as
well as the market leaders to give voice to the call for the provision of
hygienic toilet nationwide.

As
part of the efforts to drive it course on ensuring people have access to clean
toilets in homes and communities, Harpic announced deploying of Free Harpic
Experience Mobile Toilets and educating consumers on how to keep and maintain
clean hygienic toilets and push for a momentum for behavioural change.

Speaking
at a press briefing/awareness creation event held in Lagos, Marketing Director West
Africa Mr. Oguzhan Silivrili, stated that the Harpic Experience Moments is a
set of activities that began with reaching 1,000,000 homes across 16 cities
within the country to educate consumers about how to keep a clean and hygienic
toilet.

“This
world toilet day,” he said “marks the flag off of the ‘Harpic Mobile Toilet
Experience Train’ that would be rolled out to increase access to clean toilet
especially in public places where toilets are dilapidated or nonexistent. The
Harpic train would kick off in Lagos state which has only 45% access to flush
toilets in the following communities, Lagos Island, Mushin, Agege and Ikotun
where residents will be sensitised on the need to maintain clean toilets.
During these Harpic Experience Moments, Consumers – especially women – would be
taught the simple methods of keeping their toilets clean using Harpic.”

The
Lagos State Commissioner for Rural Development, Hon. Cornelius Ojelabi who also
spoke at the event, stated that Nigeria is one of the countries that practice
open defecation the most. Represented by Engineer Akinwumi Babatunde, he
stressed that one of the ways to tackle this is to provide more toilets and
make sure they are kept clean and the gender sensitive to those using it,
especially for physically challenged individuals.

He
commended Harpic for celebrating the day and for focusing on the campaign to
end open defecation with its attendant effects on the health of the people and
the environment in general.

In
the same vein, the State Commissioner for Health, Hon. Olajide Idris said the
ministry appreciates and support what Harpic is doing in ensuring that the huge
figure of 34 million Nigerians without access to toilets is reduced
drastically. Represented by Mr. Sobowale Abayomi, Deputy Director Environmental
Health Services, the commissioner said the state government is doing all that
is necessary to ensure that people in the state do not practice open
defecation.

In
her comments, the Iyaloja of Oke-Arin
provision market, Alhaja Kuburat Osho enjoined women to focus on taking very
good care of this very important part of their home as the toilet and kitchen
are essential parts of a healthy family. She applauded Harpic for bringing the
initiative to them and also by going to the grassroots with sensitization
exercises of this nature which she noted would impact positively on the
populace.

The
World Toilet Organization was founded by Jack Sim, a Singapore business tycoon
in 2001 and it is now a growing network of 235 organisations in 58 countries
including Nigeria where a “World Toilet Day” is celebrated to create awareness
towards improving the state of toilets and sanitation globally.