Various stakeholders have been called upon to support and facilitate practices that enable women working in the informal sector to breastfeed their children.
This was the main message that prevailed on Thursday during an event at Kibera Social Grounds that saw various organisations come together to promote breastfeeding campaigns in slums.
Addressing the public during the event, Beatrice Lugalia, the coordinator of health promotion activities in Kibera-Langata Sub-County said that it is high time that breastfeeding should be taken seriously especially by employers.
She assured the residents of the government’s commitment in promoting actions by employers to become baby-friendly and to actively facilitate and support employed women to continue breastfeeding.
“It has been proven beyond doubt that breastfeeding is very essential in the growth of a child and as it is evident now, the government has approved 90 days maternity leave which can be extended based on the leave days that a mother is entitled to within a given year. This enables the mother to breastfeed a child for at least a period of six months,” said Lugalia.
She also urged women to come out and discuss with their employers on how to carry out breastfeeding at their work places without interfering with normal operations.
On her part, Kibera-Langata Sub-County head of public health nurses Christabel Bodi appealed to men to be on the forefront in supporting women and encouraging them to breastfeed their children with ease and motivation. She reiterated the idea of empowering young girls to be good breastfeeders once they attain motherhood.
Bodi also emphasised on the importance of good nutrition to the lactating mothers and proper medication during pregnancy. “Mothers should be under proper nutrition as a sure way of gaining strength and iron in the body. This is also a surety of quality milk to the baby,” she explained.
“Breastfeeding is not solely the role of the mothers. It is the responsibility of the society to ensure that any child is well fed with mother’s milk for a period of not less than six months,” added Bodi.
Breastfeeding campaigns are ongoing all over the world in this World Breastfeeding Week where the society is informed about the latest in global maternity protection entitlements, and also raising awareness of the need to strengthen related legislation and implementation.
Organisations supporting the campaigns in Kibera include Carolina for Kibera, Save the Children, and Family Health options Kenya.