Sierra Leone’s health ministry has made a nationwide appeal for men to get involved in the decision of breastfeeding their babies as part of efforts to enhance their nutritional status.
The call made in commemoration of World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) – August 1 – 7 – is also part of an effort to bridge a huge deficit in the coverage of breastfeeding for babies in the country, especially exclusive breastfeeding which is crucial in the fight against malnutrition.
According to the National Nutrition Survey 2017, the latest study conducted by the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) on nutrition, one in three under five children are malnourished in the country. This translates to about half a million children. And malnutrition is identified as a leading contributing factor to Sierra Leone’s high rates of infant deaths. The country is ranked as having the third highest rate of under-five mortality rate in Africa at 56 per 1000 live births, according to the 2017 Multiple Indicator Survey.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends exclusive breastfeeding as the only source of nutrient for babies until at age of six months. This means that within this period they consume nothing else other than breastmilk – not even water.
The MoHS says only 62 percent of babies are exclusively breastfed in the country.
“We live in hash environment and if a child is exclusively breastfed, the child is given the opportunity to be healthy and strong enough to thrive in the next generation,” Dr Amara Jambai, Chief Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health, said in a statement coinciding with the commencement of the WBW.
The WBW was set aside by the UN Health agency to promote this practice through public awareness raising.
The theme for the 2019 commemoration is: “Empowering parents: Enable breastfeeding.
The MoHS has lined up a series of activities within the next seven days to sensitize parents on the role of especially fathers in ensuring that their babies are breastfed.
APA/abj/KC