PROTECTING CHILDREN IN BURUNDI

The challenge of safe handwashing…

When COVID-19 hit Burundi, UNICEF and partners set to work on a large campaign promoting handwashing with soap to stop the transmission of the virus. However, nearly 90 percent of Burundi’s 12 million population live below the international poverty line, meaning that buying basic supplies such as soap is rarely an option.

With the cost of a standard bar of soap at 300 Burundian francs (BIF) or £0.12 pence, purchasing soap for handwashing is something many Burundians need to think twice about.

Making handwashing accessible

To help solve this problem, UNICEF worked with a local soap producer, cutting the price of soap in half. They would also use its distribution system to make the soap available all over the country.

For parents such as Cecile, this campaign has been life-changing, and now she and her daughter Maeva can safely and affordably wash their hands and help prevent the spread of infection, keeping them healthy. .

“We know that washing hands with soap is a really good way of protecting ourselves against the spread of COVID-19,” said Cecile, a mother of two. “Now that there is this blue soap, we can afford to buy it and we feel safer.”

Thanks to incredible supporters like you, UNICEF can continue to help children like Maeva access vital safe water and sanitation supplies.