Recovered COVID-19 Survivor Becomes Handwashing And Anti-Stigma Awareness Champion

Matilda Agamu

3 billion people – 40% of the world’s population – do not have a place in their homes to wash their hands with water and soap. Three-quarters of those who lack access to water and soap live in the world’s poorest countries and are amongst the most vulnerable: children and families living in informal settlements, migrant and refugee camps, or in areas of active conflict.

This puts an estimated 1 billion people at immediate risk of COVID-19 simply because they lack basic handwashing facilities (WHO/UNICEF 2020).

Hand hygiene facilities are lacking even in places where they are most needed: nearly half of all schools do not have handwashing facilities with water and soap, affecting 900 million school-age children. 43% of health care settings do not have hand hygiene facilities at points of care where patients are treated. With limited or no hand hygiene facilities and improvement programs, health care workers’ compliance with hand hygiene best practices can be as low as 8%. This puts teachers, doctors, nurses, patients – all of us – at risk (WHO/UNICEF 2020).

Matilda Agamu, the 33-year old pregnant woman, the first person to contract COVID-19 in the Upper East Region has successfully delivered and recently out doored as handwashing and anti-stigma champion by RISE-Ghana, a local NGO based in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region of Ghana.

Matilda Agamu and other community influencers are leading community outreach as part of UNICEF-Ghana’s Emergency Response on COVID-19 under its Communication for Development (C4D) in the Upper East and Ahafo Regions.

The UNICEF-Ghana C4D funded initiative with RISE-Ghana is expected to reach out to at least 1, 500,000 people with the needed knowledge, attitudes, and skills to stop the spread of COVID and prevent stigma.

The intervention is delivering the following milestones

1. Training health workers and community volunteers on Tippy Tap construction to increase hand hygiene in low resource settings to improve hand hygiene and reduce vulnerability to COVID-19.
2. 15 Mobile hand washing and infotainment sessions held at major markets and streets featuring Champions like Matilda Agamu and other local celebrities and community influencers.
3. 16 radio discussion on COVID-19 approved protocols featuring the Health Promotion Unit of the Ghana Health Service HS and community influencers to promote adherence and confront myths.

4. Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) materials are being placed at main streets and vantage locations to deepen awareness about COVID-19.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Signed

Awal Ahmed Kariama

Executive Director

Vision:

A world in which Human Rights and Sustainable Development informs all actions to empower people to live in DIGNITY. Core Values: Accountability, Equal Opportunities & Diversity, Mutual Respect, Inclusion, Equity & Justice. Mission: To facilitate and initiate processes/programs that empower poor people’s movements to access and utilize the social, human, and natural resources they need in a sustainable and timely manner to become self-reliant.