By Abdullahi Lukman
The Minister of Environment, Malam Balarabe Lawal, has urged Nigerians to embrace regular handwashing with soap and running water to prevent diseases and improve public health.
Malam Lawal made the call on at the commemoration of the 2026 Global Handwashing Day held at Police Day Secondary School, Area 11, Abuja.
The minister said proper handwashing remains one of the simplest and most affordable ways to prevent infections, including cholera, typhoid, diphtheria, Lassa fever and COVID-19.
Represented by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Dr. Salihu Usman, the Minister said handwashing with soap can reduce the risk of diarrhoeal diseases by up to 50 per cent and respiratory infections by nearly 25 per cent.
He advised Nigerians to wash their hands at critical times, including before eating, after using the toilet, after handling waste and after contact with animals.
Lawal called on federal, state and local governments, non-governmental organisations, community leaders and the media to intensify hygiene awareness, improve access to sanitation facilities and promote behavioural change.
He urged schools, healthcare facilities and workplaces to provide accessible handwashing stations and encouraged communities to strengthen hygiene education, especially among children.
The minister also urged young people to leverage digital platforms, videos and social media to promote hand hygiene, noting that innovative communication can drive adoption of healthy practices.
He said the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Environment and other relevant agencies, remains committed to implementing policies and programmes to improve Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) nationwide.
Lawal stressed that promoting hygiene requires collective action beyond providing facilities, adding that proper maintenance and management of such facilities are critical to disease prevention.
He commended the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Nestlé Nigeria Plc, Female Professionals in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (FEMinWASH), the management of Police Day Secondary School and other partners for supporting WASH initiatives.
“Clean hands save lives. The power to protect our families, communities and future generations lies in our hands,” he said.
Also speaking, the National Coordinator of the IFRC Country Support Platform, Mr. Iliya Cheshi, said regular handwashing is an effective public health measure for preventing infections and containing outbreaks.
Cheshi, an epidemiologist, cited his experience during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone and Nigeria’s COVID-19 response to underscore the importance of hygiene in disease control.
He said educating children on hand hygiene helps them develop lifelong healthy habits and spread awareness within their families and communities.
He called for sustained public awareness and stronger stakeholder partnerships to promote handwashing.
In his remarks, the Commandant of Police Day Secondary School, CSP Moses Bammai, said teaching children proper handwashing from an early age helps instill lasting habits that promote personal hygiene.
Bammai described hosting the event as an opportunity to educate young people on cleanliness and disease prevention.
Global Handwashing Day is observed annually on October 15 to promote handwashing with soap as an effective means of preventing diseases and saving lives. The campaign was launched in 2008.
