By Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Bolgatanga, Aug 9, GNA – The Rural Initiatives for Self-Empowerment Ghana (RISE-Ghana), an advocacy Non-Governmental Oorganisation, has called on the government, institutions and other stakeholders to create breastfeeding centres at workplaces.
This, it said, would make workplaces friendly to lactating mothers and encourage exclusive breastfeeding to promote healthy growth of children and help fight malnutrition.
This was in a statement, signed and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga, by Alhaji Awal Ahmed Kariama, the Executive Director of RISE-Ghana.
It was part of activities to mark World Breastfeeding Week, which is being commemorated on the theme, “Let’s make breastfeeding work with work”.
The statement worried that the lack of breastfeeding centres at workplaces posed significant threats to the promotion of exclusive breastfeeding and could present nutritional challenges to children.
“It is of this view that RISE-Ghana wishes to make a passionate appeal to all stakeholders, CSOs, mothers and other organizations to join the campaign to support and promote breastfeeding by providing space or centres at workplaces for mothers to breastfeed their babies while at work in line international labour standards and best practice,” it said.
The statement emphasised that breastfeeding was the natural way babies received nutrients for their growth, development and well-being and it was the single most effective strategy for child survival.
“Breastmilk contains all the nutrients that a baby needs for the first six months of life such as the colostrum contains antibodies, white cells, purgative properties and growth factors,” it added.
It revealed that statistics from the World Health Organisation had shown that early initiation of breastfeeding could reduce global newborn deaths by 1.5 million deaths annually while 45 per cent of child deaths was associated with breastfeeding.
Knowing the benefits of breastfeeding however has not encouraged an increase in exclusive breastfeeding in recent times rather the rate of exclusive breastfeeding has reduced due to work, it said.
“According to the Ghana Health Service on breastfeeding, 52 per cent of babies are put to the breast within the first four months and 20 per cent of children are given water in the first six months in Ghana.
“One of the reasons for the reduction in exclusive breastfeeding is due to work, many breastfeeding mothers due to work, corporate and trades tend to give additives to babies to support in the little time they give to breastfeeding.
“Some of the babies are given out to day-care centres only to be taken after the day’s activities. We believe, mothers should be able to breastfeed their babies optimally at work without any encumbrances and guilt,” it added.
GNA