HUL's ‘Haath, Mooh Aur Bum’ Campaign To Promote Good Health And Hygiene Practices

MUMBAI (December 2015): Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) recently announced the launch of ‘Swachh Aadat, Swachh Bharat’ programme in line with Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) to promote good health and hygiene practices. This is a multi-brand behaviour change programme synergising the efforts of HUL’s brands Lifebuoy, Domex and Pureit with two key thrusts: An on-ground behavior change model and a mass media campaign to drive engagement and awareness.

Swachh Basti – Onground behavior change model:

HUL has piloted a behavior change model in the slums of Mumbai and Delhi. This programme encourages people to adopt three ‘Swachh Aadat’ or ‘Clean Habits’ – washing hands 5 times a day, using a toilet for defecation and adopting safe drinking water practices – three simple habits that will go a long way in reducing illnesses in our country.

The programme is being undertaken with support of municipal corporations to reach out to students in municipal schools where a four-week behaviour change programme was conducted through engaging activities like skits, demos and jingles. This programme also covers mothers and other stakeholders in the local community such as doctors and support groups to create awareness and develop champions within schools and the community. Till date, one lakh lives have been touched through multiple engagement points (school contact programme, home to home programme and neonatal programme). The programme aims to reach two lakh people by end of 2015.

A mass media campaign has been launched to promote awareness across the country, which will reach out to 75 million people across India. Through the campaign idea of ‘Haath Mooh aur Bum, Bimari Hogi Kum’, HUL has sought to bring alive this message in a fun and engaging manner, celebrating children as the agents of change. The campaign is in line with our belief that adoption of hygiene habits is as necessary as development of hygiene and sanitation infrastructure to realise the Clean India Mission.

Speaking about this programme, Sanjiv Mehta, Managing Director and CEO, HUL, said: “We believe that companies like HUL have a key role in helping the country achieve ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’. More than 90% of households in India use HUL products. This gives us both an opportunity and responsibility to make a meaningful difference. Our expertise in behaviour change programmes in the area of hand washing and sanitation and our experience in developing and delivering innovative partnership models positions us uniquely in doing this.”

The programme is in line with the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan global ambition of helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well being. According to HUL, from 2010 till date, the company has touched lives of 120 million people through health and well being programmes in India. Handwashing programmes by Lifebuoy have protected 63 million people, Pureit’s safe drinking water programme has touched 56 million and over 3000 toilets have been built through the Domex Toilet Academy.