Breaking down the hygiene barriers

Essentially, it’s about the activities we perform every day that keep us clean and healthy, from washing our food before we eat to handwashing with soap, and giving girls and women the essentials they need to manage their periods with dignity.

But for millions of people around the world, making these tasks a normal part of everyday life is impossible. When water is scarce, it has to be saved for cooking and drinking – even if it’s dirty – and using it to wash clothes or clean dishes simply isn't an option.

That’s why your support doesn’t just enable people to access clean water and decent toilets. It also means we can promote good hygiene, making sure people experience the benefits for generations to come.

And how important is hygiene in keeping people safe from disease? Research shows that simply handwashing with soap could cut the risk of diarrhoea almost in half – saving hundreds of lives every single day.

Spreading the word about good hygiene

We're taking an innovative approach to improving hygiene: challenging taboos, changing behaviours and creating solutions that work for each individual community.

Pupils play the blue hand game about hygiene education at a school in Bangladesh.

Diarrhoeal diseases spread fast in schools, but explaining how they travel can be tricky. In Bangladesh, our blue hand game helps students understand the importance of handwashing. Image: WaterAid/Abir Abdullah

A puppet hygiene education show takes place in Antenitibe, Madagascar.

In Antenitibe, Madagascar, children watch our hygiene education show with six-foot puppets – a vital first step in developing good hygiene practices in time for new taps and toilets being installed. Image: WaterAid/Marco Betti

Local men play a menstrual hygiene awareness card game in Duggor, India.

Periods were a taboo subject in Duggor, India, but our menstrual hygiene education groups not only helped local girls take control of their menstrual health, they also encouraged men to support them. Image: WaterAid/Poulomi Basu

A group of children hold a hygiene education poster in Sylhet, Bangladesh.

Working with the tea-picking community in Sylhet, Bangladesh, we've been spreading the word about good hygiene through posters, plays, music and songs to show the benefits of staying healthy. Image: WaterAid/GMB Akash/Panos

Amina and Isaya play a hygiene education game in Tanzania.

In Tanzania, Amina and Isaya play snakes and ladders – with a difference. Their board game teaches them the dangers of going to the toilet in the bush and eating fruit without washing it first. Image: WaterAid/Marco Betti

Taking a stand on period taboos

During my first period I was kept in my friend’s house. I was told not to see male members of my family.

Sabina, 15, Nepal

In Sindhuli, Nepal, girls like Sabina face a whole host of stigma and taboo when they get their first period. Many are sent away from home, to make sure they don't come into contact with their male relatives. They're also told not to look in a mirror, eat papaya or drink cow’s milk.

Here, using cameras for the very first time, Sabina and her friends document the experiences they face every month, and the impact it has on their lives.

See the photos >

Thank you, Dr Semmelweis

160 years ago, women were terrified of giving birth at Vienna’s General Hospital – until one man looked into the power of handwashing. Tragically, his life-saving findings proved to be ahead of their time.

Read the story on Medium