Ikeja Electric Plc, Nigeria’s largest distribution company has partnered with Dr. Ameyo Stella Adadevoh (DRASA) Health Trust and Kleanmate to celebrate this year’s Global Hand washing Day with children in selected Secondary Schools located within its network coverage.
The event, celebrated yearly on October 15, promotes right hygiene practices, with the aim of reducing the spread of infectious diseases.
The outreach event, which forms part of Ikeja Electric’s Personal-Corporate Social Responsibility, took place in six schools where over 1000 children were taught the right way to wash their hands. The schools visited were United Junior High School, Ikorodu; Amuwo Odofin Junior Secondary School; Gbagada Junior Comprehensive School; Oke-‐Ira Junior Grammar School; Community Junior Grammar School, Akowonjo and Iju Obawole Junior Grammar School.
Speaking on the significance of the activity, Head, Corporate Communications, Ikeja Electric, Felix Ofulue explained that “Hand washing with soap is one of the most important public health interventions in the world and the World Health Organization (WHO) research clearly indicates that child mortality is highly reduced where these basic hand washing steps are routinely practiced.”
Ofulue noted that the hand washing routine made up of six simple steps to Wet, Lather, Scrub, Rinse, Dry and Turn Off Tap with a tissue, was an effective way to reduce the spread of infectious diseases.
“The six-step routine is like “self-vaccine” which effectively protects the children from diseases like diarrhea and cholera. Our efforts are aimed at training children to be more hygiene conscious and assist to extend the training to friends and families such that they can all have healthier and more meaningful lives”, he said.
Ikeja Electric’s PCSR activities, are staff-driven socially valuable volunteer activities that have seen the power distribution company intervene in areas of social needs, such as in providing free eye care, encouraging better reading culture among children by donating books, as well as organizing market clean up exercises, among others.
*Photo shows Kenechukwu Okafor (Right) of Ikeja Electric and Prakash Rochani (left) of Kleanmate showing students of Oke-Ira Junior Secondary School how to properly wash their hands, as part of IE’s Global Hand Washing Day PCSR activities.
