Myriam Sidibe is a warrior in the fight against childhood disease. Her weapon of choice? A bar of soap. For cost-effective prevention against sickness, it’s hard to beat soapy hand-washing, which cuts down risk of pneumonia, diarrhea, cholera and worse. Sidibe, a public-health expert, makes a smart case for public-private partnerships to promote clean hands — and local, sustainable entrepreneurship.

Myriam Sidibe: The simple power of hand-washing

The simple power of hand-washing

Handwashing with soap can halve diarrhea rates and reduce respiratory infections by a third, saving 600,000 children yearly.

Global Handwashing Day unites public and private sectors in the fight to make handwashing with soap a universal habit by 2020.

Handwashing with soap could prevent the deaths of 600,000 children annually, stopping daily tragedies akin to plane crashes.