A couple of weeks ago HCR Pakistan held a competition with boys and girls from the government primary school in a village near Charsadda. The competition got children thinking about sickness and how to prevent it – especially Covid-19.

Typically, during this time of year, children get more sickness. The community health worker told us that children suffer a lot from typhoid, diarrhea, gastro-diseases and tapeworm. Covid-19 adds to the risk, especially after the schools re-opened at the end of summer. The health worker also noticed that families and children were not following the Covid-19 health guidelines.

The community volunteers from HCR’s local partner, New Dawn, decided to revitalise families’ awareness around handwashing and hygiene. So, the created audio slots on social media and the local FM station which primarily addressed the adults. They wondered what the most effective media would be to engage children. We know from experience that media messages are most effective when community members are involved in creating them. After consultation with HCR Pakistan, New Dawn decided to hold a painting competition for primary school age children, to create pictures about the importance of handwashing, especially after using the toilet. It was community-centred media, but not as we know it!

Children in Majukay creating a hygiene poster

In a major first for this community, girls were allowed to participate in the competition alongside boys. The first prize went to one of the boys and the second prize was awarded to a class 4 girl.

A student who got the first prize said, "I did not know how important it was to wash hands for our healthy lives. From now on I will tell my family the importance of handwashing and hygiene.”

Art was previously been considered a low priority for childrens’ education but this looks set to change, as we heard from school staff members:

The school principal said:

“we did not realize how talented our children are. Through this painting competition, we also learned a lot. We’ve decided to start a new period in our weekly schedule to promote painting.”

Teacher #1: This was the first time we have experienced such an activity "learning in fun". our students also learned about competition.

Teacher#2: We need more such activities in the future as girls and boys loved it and learned about [Covid-19 hygiene rules].