To celebrate World Breast Feeding Week Aug 1-7, World Vision International Nepal urged female policy-makers to become part of the campaign to promote universal breast-feeding.

In line with the slogan for the year ' Mother Support: Going for Gold', World Vision joined the Ministry of Health and Population and a local partner NGO in organising a half-day workshop for 197 newly-elected female Constituent Assembly(CA) members.

The goal was to improve the understanding of female lawmakers and policy developers on the importance of breastfeeding to child health. Each year, in Nepal, more than 50,000 children die with malnutrition as the underlying cause for more than 60 per cent of these deaths. Effective breastfeeding alone can reduce 16% of Nepal’s child mortality, but only around 50% of children under six months are exclusively breastfed (UNICEF/Nepal Demographic Health Survey 2006).

The need to breast feed infants within an hour of birth and promote exclusive breast feeding from birth till six-months was highlighted during the workshop, which also saw Nutrition Chief- Ministry of Health and Population and nutrition experts elaborate on the existing policies, needs and benefits of breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding with 3 E's (Early- within one hour of delivery, Exclusive- only providing breast-milk to the child up to six month and Extended -up to 24 months of age) keeps the child healthy and well nourished. It has been regarded as free nutrition and provides
natural immunization to every child. Breastfeeding is also the birth right of every child. But only 53% of children under six months are exclusively breastfed in Nepal.(Nepal Demographic Health Survey 2006).

Many of the reasons for this can be tied in with existing gender inequality, social, economic and cultural barriers. Mothers often don’t have enough time to breastfeed due to workload at home and in the fields (80% of the people in Nepal are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood). Negligent family support and minimum awareness are also causes for reduced breastfeeding. Likewise early marriage, low birth spacing and having many children has also led to young children being deprived of being breastfed.

Participants at the workshop were equipped with reasons, both scientific and social, to support new mothers in this important health initiative. Guest speaker Raj Kumar Pokherel, Nutrition Chief, Government of Nepal reminded the audience that children are the future of the country and that their ability to “go for gold” is something that needs to start from the time they are born.

Mohammaddi Siddiqui, a CA member from Banke, one of the Mid-Western districts of Nepal said, “The workshop has helped us further understand the value of breastfeeding and the need for family support to new mothers, that is lacking in many districts of Nepal where new mothers go without nutritious food, often neglected and isolated. We will strengthen our efforts toward reaching out to many such mothers in need of support.”

The workshop ended with a strong political commitment from the CA members, who will be contributing in the making of the new constitution of Nepal; to support, protect and promote breastfeeding in Nepal.

Ram Hari Adhikari, Nutrition Project Coordinator, World Vision International Nepal says, “We hope that in the new constitution of Nepal, child rights are ensured by making provisions to support women in breastfeeding so that we can lower the rates of child malnutrition in Nepal.”