Dettol, a leading hygiene and disinfection brand under Reckitt, marked Global Handwashing Day with the launch of Phase Two of the Dettol Hygiene Quest, an innovative global education program that equips young children with essential hygiene skills for life.
The program targets children aged 5 to 11 years, their teachers and families, promoting handwashing, sanitation, and germ awareness through fun, curriculum-aligned learning.
In Uganda, Dettol is implementing the initiative in partnership with Chil Group (Chil AI Lab), a local health and hygiene innovation company. The collaboration blends Reckitt’s global expertise in hygiene education with Chil Group’s experience in AI-driven health solutions, ensuring that every lesson reaches children in an engaging and impactful way.
Building on the success of the first rollout, Phase Two will expand to more schools across Uganda. The program combines improved hygiene infrastructure, such as handwashing stations, with hands-on hygiene lessons. Learners and teachers receive guidebooks with step-by-step handwashing instructions, interactive class materials, to make daily hygiene a sustainable routine.
Speaking during the launch, Bornface Shaka, Country Manager at Reckitt Uganda, emphasized the company’s belief that hygiene is a fundamental right for every child.
“This phase aims to reach more school-going children and instill good hygiene habits early in life. Reckitt’s Country Manager for Reckitt Uganda. Dettol continues to champion science-backed innovations that meet the everyday hygiene needs of communities,” said Mr. Shaka.
The expanded phase builds on the success of the first rollout, which reached 750 schools across Uganda and led to the construction of 1,500 handwashing facilities, one for boys and one for girls in every school.
Dr Shamin Nabuuma, Founder of Chil Group, Phase Two aims to reach even more schools across districts such as Lira, Gulu, Kampala, Isingiro, and Sironko, while introducing new digital tools to enhance teaching and monitoring.
“Together with Reckitt, we have launched the Dettol Hygiene Chatbot—a digital assistant that helps teachers track student attendance, plan lessons, and monitor hygiene practices more efficiently. It’s about making teachers’ work smoother, smarter, and more impactful,” said Dr Nabuuma.
At the heart of the project is the Keti Dettol Hygiene Quest chatbot, an AI assistant accessible via WhatsApp and a mobile app. The chatbot helps teachers weave hygiene messages, such as handwashing and menstrual health, into daily lesson plans. It provides creative suggestions, instant feedback and even performance scores, helping teachers improve while maintaining full privacy. All identities and scores are encrypted, ensuring that no school leader or peer can access personal data.
The first phase of the program reached over 1,500 schools and laid the groundwork for expansion across East Africa. By integrating hygiene education with teacher training, community engagement, and playful learning tools like stories and games, Dettol is building hygiene habits that last a lifetime.
“You have shown that when government, development partners, and the private sector work together, we can deliver solutions that are inclusive, innovative, and scalable,” said Florence Nambozo, Minister of State for Karamoja Affairs.
“Your commitment to reaching even the most remote schools in Uganda is deeply commendable. The Government of Uganda pledges continued support for initiatives like this, which contribute directly to SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation). We urge district leaders and education officers to sustain these efforts—keeping facilities functional, using guide materials consistently, and leveraging data from the AI chatbot for effective decision-making.”
Dettol’s Hygiene Quest is part of Reckitt’s broader global push for hygiene education, with similar programs in Nigeria (in partnership with the Wellbeing Foundation Africa)
According to a 2022 WHO/UNICEF report, 779 million people in Africa lack basic sanitation, while 839 million have no access to basic hygiene facilities.
This year’s Global Handwashing Day theme, “Be a Handwashing Hero,” celebrates the life-saving power of soap. Through Hygiene Quest, Dettol reaffirms its mission to champion hygiene education and foster healthier, more resilient communities; one clean hand at a time.
