West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) visited six public schools and taught some 700 schoolchildren and 380 educators about the value of good health and hygiene, in celebration of Global Handwashing Day (GHD).
Maynilad recently went to select public schools in Quezon City, Muntinlupa City, Valenzuela City, and Noveleta in Cavite Province to stress the importance of proper handwashing through fun and engaging activities. Hygiene kits were also given to the participating students. Moreover, the water company turned over handwashing stations to 68 public schools, in support of the WiNS (water, sanitation, and hygiene in schools) program of the Department of Education (DepEd).
Besides the school visits, Maynilad also conducted Daloy Dunong Online workshops—in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH), DepEd, and Maynilad Water Academy—to capacitate 380 educators and community leaders in mounting WaSH educational drives. The online workshop also inculcated environmental responsibility among the participants through the conservation of water resources.
“Through our GHD activities, we hope to raise awareness among the youth about the life-saving habit of proper handwashing. Our mission is to have children grow up to become champions for creating healthier communities,” said Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez.
Maynilad mounted its GHD 2022 campaign with support from DepEd, the DOH Health Promotions Bureau, the Quezon City Health Department, Local Water Utilities Administration, Noveleta local government unit (LGU), Muntinlupa LGU, and non-governmental organizations Good Neighbors, Philippine Water Partnership, Rotary Club Heroes Hills, and JCI Asin Noveleta.
GHD is an international advocacy dedicated to promote proper handwashing with clean water and soap as an effective and affordable way of preventing diseases such as diarrhea and pneumonia. Held every October, GHD is celebrated in over 1,000,000 schools in 100 countries by 200 million people.