DILI (TOP) – Global Handwashing Day is a global advocacy day dedicated to increase awareness about the importance of hand hygiene, especially through hand washing with soap and running water, and triggering lasting change from the policy-level to community-driver action.
The 2020 hand washing day theme is “hand hygiene for all”, it is a call to action to make hand hygiene a reality for all.
The current COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical role hand hygiene plays in minimizing disease transmission. This year’s theme reminds us of the need to take immediate action on hand hygiene across all public and private settings to respond to and control the COVID-19 pandemic. CARE International in Timor-Leste believes that Hand Washing must become everybody’s business and therefore need to improve handwashing behaviors at the individual and community levels so that it becomes a long term habit and norm.
CARE International in Timor-Leste is celebrating Global Hand washing Day through a range of campaigns and activities across several levels: From 15 October until 15 November CARE’s campaigning will include handwashing competition a facebook campaign through CARE’s LAFAEK page, and at the same time, all CARE staff will also be holding an internal 30 day hand washing competition.
The HATUTAN Program, funded by the US Department of Agriculture, will lead the handwashing competition with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. The competition challenges students to take the lead and make hand washing a 30 day habit in their schools in Ainaro, Ermera, Liquisa and Manatuto.
The European Union funded COVID-19 Response will be celebrating Global Handwashing Day via community events where hygiene equipment will be handed over to target communities in Viqueque municipality.
“As we begin with this campaign, I would like to invite all CARE’s partners, community leaders, teachers and student to join us in this important period for hand washing day celebrations. It is important that hygiene promotion should not be consider as one-off event but rather and adaptive process and adjusted in order to support sustained changes” say Peter Goodfellow, CARE International in Timor-Leste’s Country Director. (pr)
