In 2010, 19 Lifebuoy markets celebrated Global Handwashing Day:

  • Bangladesh: The Lifebuoy team worked closely with the Government of Bangladesh and other NGO partners to execute an attempt to beat the Guinness World Record for most people washing their hands at the same time. Over 46,000 school children took part in this partnership event, which was covered live on TV and radio. In addition, more than 86,000 students nationwide pledged to wash their hands with soap.

  • Cambodia: Lifebuoy worked closely with Ministry of Rural Development, UNICEF and local media to host a Global Handwashing Day dance, which was attended by 1,200 people.

  • Indonesia: 3 million school children in 720 schools took part in hand washing activities across the country. A national school drawing competition asked children to illustrate one occasion when people should wash their hands providing a fun educational activity for Global Handwashing Day.

  • Kenya: Lifebuoy partnered with the Kenyan Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health to establish the first Guinness World Record attempt in Africa - over 19,000 school children washed their hands at the same time, breaking the World Record.

  • Sri Lanka: People across the country pledged to wash their hands at a series of high-impact hand washing events. The First Lady of Sri Lanka was one of the first to pledge towards washing her hands with soap before eating at a high-profile media conference.

  • South Africa: Popular singer and Lifebuoy ambassador Yvonne Chaka Chaka created and performed a song especially for Global Handwashing Day called “Bumbanani” (Let’s Unite Against Germs). Yvonne debuted the song at a high profile hand washing event, generating extensive media coverage and raising the profile of the day itself.

  • UAE / Gulf: Over 200,000 students in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, and 100,000 students in UAE and Kuwait, took part in educational activities to highlight the importance of hand washing with soap.

  • Vietnam: 3,000 people including representatives from Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, UNICEF and Red Cross attended an event to pledge towards washing their hands before eating. This event hit the headlines across leading dailies and four lead TV channels. Across the country, 45,000 people made the same pledge.

  • Unilever Employees: Throughout Unilever offices worldwide, activities took place to celebrate Global Handwashing Day, with many employees, including Paul Polman, Unilever CEO, pledging to wash his hands with soap before eating. In India, over 700 Hindustan Unilever employees participated in a school outreach programme in Mumbai, reaching over 32,000 children with hand washing messages.

  • Social media: For the first time ever, Lifebuoy used social media channels Facebook and Twitter to spread hand-washing messages to a mass audience everywhere across the world. Its social media campaign enabled people to pledge their support online towards hand washing before eating. Unilever CEO Paul Polman made the first pledge – see the video here.