With Africa battling the spread of infectious diseases that often affect women and children, a Japanese firm has set its sights on addressing the issue via one product: locally produced hand disinfectant.

Saraya Co., an Osaka-based firm producing hand soaps and other hygiene products as well as detergents, began homegrown production of alcohol-based liquid hand disinfectant in Uganda in February 2014, in hopes of improving the environment in the nation's hospitals and elsewhere in the region.

"This is a product absolutely needed for African countries," said Hirotsugu Daishima, a 51-year-old Saraya employee who has played a key role in its Uganda production.