Hygiene is the first and last line of defence against disease, yet it remains one of global health’s most underfunded priorities.
Every year, diarrhoeal diseases kill over a million people—nearly half of them children under five. Most of these deaths are preventable through basic hygiene practices. Yet 2.3 billion people still lack access to handwashing facilities with soap and water at home.
Traditional health research has focused on treating specific diseases rather than understanding the preventive behaviours that could stop them. Meanwhile, WASH funding tends to prioritise infrastructure over the human behaviours that ultimately determine health outcomes. This fragmented approach has left fundamental questions unanswered about what works, where, and why.
We still lack rigorous studies on effective behaviour change mechanisms, standardised metrics for measuring impact, and a comprehensive understanding of how hygiene interventions perform across different contexts and populations. Limited career pathways mean too few researchers are equipped to tackle these challenges, creating a cycle where insufficient expertise compounds the evidence gaps. Without robust evidence and sufficient research capacity, policymakers struggle to justify investments. Programmes are designed on assumptions rather than data, and opportunities to prevent disease and improve lives are missed—particularly in the places where hygiene challenges are most acute.
As antimicrobial resistance rises and climate-related hazards compound existing barriers to hygiene, hygiene research is not a “nice to have”—it’s essential infrastructure for global health security. Strong evidence underpins effective interventions that deliver measurably better outcomes than those built on assumptions. And the impact extends far beyond disease prevention: robust hygiene systems improve gender equity, school attendance, mental well-being and economic opportunity.
RGHI exists to build this evidence base and train the researchers who will strengthen hygiene as a foundation of global health.
Breaking the Cycle
RGHI’s work aims to break this cycle, elevate hygiene as a critical component of global health strategy, and ensure that quality hygiene practices are accessible to all – not just a privilege for some.