First Lady, Rebecca Akufo-Addo has noted that children who are breastfed exclusively in the first six months of their lives and are provided with foods with the right balance of nutrients from six months to two years are more likely to survive, to do better at school and to be more productive throughout their lives.
According to her, exclusive breastfeeding rate is reducing as over 20 percent of children are given water in the first six months of their lives and only half the number of newborns are put to the breast within the first hour of life.
Speaking at the launched of a new campaign to improve exclusive breastfeeding and promote good nutrition for young children in Ghana, Mrs. Akufo-Addo said stressed on the need to improve the current support systems available for women and create conducive environments for women to breastfeed in their various workplaces, markets, homes, communities, and social gatherings.
The year-long “Start Right, Feed Right – from birth to two years” campaign also seeks to address the issues of stunting, wasting, and unnecessary deaths among infants.
The project, to be rolled out in all 16 regions, will use community mobilization tools, skilled nutrition counseling support, and advocacy actions to galvanize momentum to improve breastfeeding and complementary feeding of infants and young children.
It will also provide support to health centers to develop breastfeeding friendly facilities as a model for supporting women to nurse and provide optimal newborn care.
Source: Mybrytfmonline/Kofi Atakora
