HYGIENE AND BEHAVIOUR CHANGE COALITION

Full list of charity partners: ActionAid, Aga Khan Foundation, AMREF, BBC Media Action, BRAC, Care International, GIZ, IRC, IRC WASH, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Oxfam, Plan International, PSI, Save the Children, Sesame Workshop, SNV, UNHCR, UNICEF, WaterAid, World Vision and WSUP. 

The Hygiene and Behaviour Change Coalition (HBCC) was created by Unilever and the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to mount a rapid response to limit the spread of COVID-19 among vulnerable populations in low- and middle-income countries. HBCC is novel in its combination of government funding with in-kind support and management from a private sector partner, and represents a £100m contribution to COVID-19 mitigation efforts.

HBCC is formed of 21 NGO and UN partners running 78 projects across 37 countries, with the aim of reaching 1 billion people. This will be achieved through a 3-pronged approach, leveraging our partnership at scale to distribute hygiene products and services, deliver behaviour change messaging through mass media and face-to-face communication, and using digital strategies.

Despite only being part-way through our coalition we have already achieved a huge amount, reaching hundreds of millions of people and donating over 70 million hygiene products to the most at-risk and vulnerable, including refugees, migrant workers, women and girls, the elderly, people with disabilities and health workers. Coalition partners, including 13 UK-based charities, have also gained a huge amount from this partnership which will stand us in excellent stead for continued response to the pandemic and future emergencies.