THE CASE FOR EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING
All stakeholders should do more to encourage breastfeeding mothers
The 2025 edition of the World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) celebration kicked off last Friday with the theme, ‘Prioritise breastfeeding: create sustainable support systems.’ The annual campaign is to promote exclusive breastfeeding for babies in their first six months, and continued breastfeeding for up to two years of age or beyond. “Breast milk is central to child survival and development. We all have a role to play in supporting mothers to breastfeed effectively,” said the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Nigeria Country Representative, Wafaa Saeed Abdelatef. “ We urge every level of government, every workplace, and every community to build lasting support systems so that no mother lacks the encouragement or resources she needs.”
Although Nigeria Labour Law Act stipulates that pregnant female employees are entitled to 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, 50 per cent of their regular income during this period and breaks during working hours to care for their children, this is not what obtains in most workplaces across the country. It is also not what happens in many rural communities where mothers face cultural, social, and practical barriers that prevent them from breastfeeding their children exclusively for the first six months of their lives. Yet, by providing essential nutrients at their formative stage in life, breastfeeding is widely recognised as one of the most effective ways to ensure the health and survival of infants.
Indeed, science has established that breast milk strengthens the immune system and fosters a unique bond between mother and child. Children that are breastfed have fewer infections and fewer chronic diseases. But despite these proven benefits, many mothers in our country, according to the Nutrition Society of Nigeria (NSN), face significant challenges in initiating and maintaining breastfeeding, often due to a lack of support, misinformation, and social or economic barriers. To address these challenges, NSN has led a campaign for a six-month paid maternity leave for working mothers and establishment of workplace breastfeeding policies in all the 36 states.
Available statistics reveal that Nigeria’s exclusive breastfeeding rate is currently about 34 per cent. That means that about two-thirds of infants in the country do not benefit from breast milk in their formative years. This is far below the global target of 50 per cent by this year (2025) set by the World Health Assembly (WHA). Statistics also reveal that less than 10 per cent of organisations in Nigeria have a workplace breastfeeding policy. “This means deliberately implementing breastfeeding-friendly policies, like extended paid maternity leave, flexible work hours, and provision of lactating rooms and creches,” according to the NSN that has been advocating that workplaces must create an enabling environment for women to thrive professionally. “By fostering such supportive measures, workplaces can embrace inclusivity and empower women to succeed in their careers, while ensuring the well-being and nourishment of the next generation.”
The essence of breastfeeding, according to health experts, is that during this critical period of early growth and development, the antibodies that babies receive from breast milk serve as protection against illness and death. But breastfeeding is also important for mothers as it prevents the risk of certain types of cancers and noncommunicable diseases. Meanwhile, some of the gaps identified in Nigeria include insufficient maternity leave policies, lack of workplace support, and inadequate access to breastfeeding education and services, particularly in rural areas. For instance, only seven states offer the recommended 24 weeks of paid maternity leave, and many women return to work without the necessary support to continue breastfeeding.
To create sustainable support systems for breastfeeding by Nigerian mothers, all critical stakeholders, including policymakers, employers and healthcare providers, must work to close these gaps.
