Matilda Nana-Manye Amissah-Arthur, wife of Vice President Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, on Monday launched Ghana’s celebration of the Global Hand-washing Day, in Accra with a call on Ghanaians to practice sound sanitation and hygienic practices, to promote health.
She said despite the focus of the day on school children, the programme must sensitise Ghanaians on sound environmental practices at homes, communities, schools, offices and markets.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur said hand-washing with soap should be a way of life for all Ghanaians and that the Global Hand-washing Day formed part of an ongoing campaign launched about nine years ago to promote hand-washing with soap.
The United Nations General Assembly, designated the year 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation and in recognition of hand-washing with soap in achieving sanitation agenda of the Millennium Development Goals, the first ever Global Hand-washing Day was designated for 15th October 2008.
Global Hand-washing Day has now become a recurring event that revolves around schools and children, with a guiding vision of promoting a local and global culture of hand-washing with soap.
The major aim of the launch was to raise awareness on the importance of hand-washing with soap and ensure sustained behavioural change.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur asked the people to wash their hands with soap to reduce the high incidence of diarhoea.
She called for the prevention of indiscriminate disposal of excreta and the washing of hand with soap to stop diarrhea.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur said, according to the World Health Organisation, globally, diarrhoeal diseases kill more than two million children every year.
She said that in Ghana, statistics from the Ministry of Health indicated that diarrhoea was a leading cause of illness and death among children.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur said that the provision of toilets should be complemented by ongoing sanitation activities to maximize the effect of sanitation and hygiene programmes.
She said: “Promoting hand-washing with soap seems like a simple idea, but it has the potential to help Ghanaians lead happier lives,” and performed the symbolic hand-washing.
