Safaricom Kenya hosts a high level multi-stakeholder event for WBW2015

August 12, 2015 - Last update: February 10, 2023

From 1 – 7 August 2015, the 2015 World Breastfeeding Week was celebrated in Kenya with a high level multi-stakeholder event and segments on key news channels. The multi-stakeholder event was held at Safaricom house in Nairobi, to promote breastfeeding and the campaign led by the Ministry of Health with support from partners including UNICEF, WHO, Safaricom, Kenya Women Finance Trust, National Bank, International Medical Corps and Kenya Red Cross.

Efforts to promote exclusive breastfeeding for children younger than six months of age have resulted in remarkable gains in infant nutrition, with the number of women feeding their infants exclusively on breast milk rising from 32% in 2008 to 61% in 2014, according to the latest Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. During World Breastfeeding Week, the Ministry of Health led activities that helped to raise public awareness on the importance of exclusive breastfeeding, as well as launched guidelines to help employers, families and communities to support mothers to breastfeed. James W. Macharia, Cabinet Secretary for Health, urged employers to establish breastfeeding-friendly workplaces, in line with the theme “Breastfeeding and work – Let’s make it work!”.

“Breastfeeding is vital to the growth and health of our babies and is thereby the very foundation of a healthy and productive Kenya and key to achieving our Vision 2030, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that children feed exclusively on breast milk for the first six months of their lives, so whether a woman is working in the formal, non-formal or home setting, it is necessary that she is empowered to claim her and her baby’s right to breastfeed.” – James W. Macharia, Cabinet Secretary for Health, Kenya

Bob Collymore Safaricom CEO said that undernutrition in children under the age of five years is a health, social and development problem that needs to be addressed through collaboration and revision of policies guiding breastfeeding in the workplace. He added that Safaricom had already taken steps to ensure that the needs of new mothers in the workplace were met. This included increasing maternity leave from the standard three months to four months, and providing facilities and benefits that allow women who return to work after their maternity leave to continue to breastfeed exclusively.

“Combining breastfeeding and work is possible. It is the responsibility of all of us to make this happen everywhere. Today, the Government joins hands with businesses and organizations, big and small, to call for dedicated time, space and support to be provided within all workplaces for breastfeeding women,” – Gladys Mugambi, Head of the Nutrition and Dietetics Unit, Ministry of Health and SUN Government Focal Point

Results from a study by the African Population and Health Research Center were shared before World Breastfeeding Week. It commends the progress made by the Government of Kenya to increase exclusive breastfeeding rates from 13% in 2003 to 61% and details how the increase in breastfeeding rates were achieved, most notably, through the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (during delivery) and the Baby Friendly Community Initiative (at home). The articles details the findings from the study which includes the identification of barriers faced by Kenyan women, to optimal breastfeeding across different social classes.

An opinion article at the Star shared the story of a mother who sacrificed breastfeeding after three months in order to continue working despite her desire to breastfeed exclusively for six months. In the article, Terry Wefwafwa, Former Head of the Nutrition Division in the Ministry of Health, said that she was concerned that, as a result of early weaning, many infants are falling sick due to infections and diarrhoea because they can’t handle the foods introduced to them at an early age. Grainne Moloney, UNICEF Head of Nutrition in Kenya and Wefwafwa, both agree that employers should provide women with the support they need to continue breastfeeding for six months and beyond.

News segments were broadcast during the week on K24TV and KTN News.