World Vision Solomon Islands COVID 19 project team continues its soap distribution programme to schools in and around Honiara this week.
Yesterday, the team and its partners distributed fifteen cartons of soap to King George Sixth School.
The partners present include US Consulate Keithie Saunders representing US Government, Bob Pollard and his team from the Kokonut Pacific Solomon Islands.
Speaking during the event World Vision Solomon Islands National Director Jimmy Nadapdap emphasized the importance of proper hygiene towards COVID 19 preventions.
“Today indeed demonstrates our contribution and work in the country especially to tackle the negative impacts of COVID 19. As we all know hygiene practices like hand washing with soap and water has played an important part in COVID-19 prevention.
However, difficulty to accessing basic hygiene items like soap and hand sanitizer, as well as a proper WASH station facility with clean water could lead to ineffective hand wash practices and an increase in disease.”
“Because of its paramount importance to ensure schools are resilient and students understand good hygiene practices, World Vision Solomon Islands is currently rolling out a COVID-19 program to assist a total of 106 Schools in Honiara and surrounding areas, East Guadalcanal and Makira- Ulawa Province.
King George Sixth School is also included in the support bucket list. The project includes providing cartons of soaps to schools and construction of WASH station facilities, starting with schools that lacks such facilities.” Mr Nadapdap said.
While urging KGVI school students to prioritise hygiene practices, Mr Nadapdap further said World Vision will not let its guard down on supporting the national government to preventing COVID 19 by continue distributing soaps to schools and building hand WASH stations.
KGVI School Principal Dr Lionel Kakai thanked World Vision and its partners for donating the soap to his school.
“I thanked World Vision and USAID for the support, I believe this donation will help improve hygiene to my students,” Mr Kakai said.
Mr Bob Pollard also thanked USAID and World Vision for choosing Kokonut Pacific as the main supplier of soap for this project.
“The soap that we supplied for this project are made from local oil, the oil palm from GPPOL and local coconut kernel,” Mr Pollard explained.
Meanwhile, US Consulate Keithie Saunders said US is happy to continue supporting World Vision’s work in the country.
The project is being supported by USAID through the Bureau of Humanitarian Affairs and Kokonut Pacific Solomon Islands is the main supplier of soap.
Up to yesterday, WVSI BHA COVID 19 project team manage to distribute to a total of 46 Schools.
Apart from BHA COVID 19 project, World Vision is also currently implementing an Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP) COVID 19 project that focuses on livelihood in Guadalcanal, Malaita and Temotu Provinces.
By WVSI Grant and Communication Department
