Parliamentary Search

Written question asked by Baroness Brown of Silvertown (Labour) on Tuesday, 25 January 2022, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 28 January 2022 (named day). It was answered by Amanda Milling (Conservative) on Friday, 28 January 2022 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Africa: Coronavirus

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2022 to Question 107528 on Africa: Coronavirus, what steps the Unilever hygiene campaign is taking to promote covid-19 vaccine uptake; and what lessons her Department has learned on the (a) efficacy and (b) value for public money of handwashing campaigns on tackling the covid-19 pandemic in the context of shifts in the scientific consensus on primary modes of covid-19 transmission.

Answer

The Hygiene, Handwashing and Behaviour Change Coalition for COVID-19 response was formed in March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic. The programme exceeded design expectations, reaching over 1.2 billion people in 37 countries with handwashing messaging, distributing over 78 million hygiene products, and training over 140,000 people, primarily healthcare workers. In December 2021, the Secretary of State for Foreign Commonwealth and Development Affairs announced a new package of international action against the Omicron variant. This includes extending the coalition for promoting COVID-specific hygiene behaviours. Encouraging vaccine uptake is planned for the extended programme.

Evidence and knowledge about the transmission of the COVID-19 virus continues to evolve rapidly, including with the rise of new variants. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) advice based on the latest evidence remains that, alongside other protective measures such as mask wearing and social distancing, hand washing is an important public health intervention that helps curb COVID-19 transmission. This is especially the case in the absence of vaccines and boosters. The London School for Hygiene and Tropical Medicine continues to provide advice across the consortium on overall priorities and the detail of hygiene messaging in the context of the best available evidence on efficacy and value for money.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
111527
Session
2021-22
Related items
Africa: Coronavirus
Tuesday, 25 January 2022
Written questions
House of Commons
Subjects
Africa Finance Vaccination Unilever Coronavirus
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk