Only 3 in 10 Nigerian babies receive exclusive breastmilk, UNICEF

A stark reality faces Nigerian infants, with only three in ten receiving exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, falling significantly short of recommended global guidelines. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) highlighted this critical issue, calling for enhanced support from employers, healthcare professionals, and families to bolster breastfeeding practices across the nation.

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Breastmilk is the first vaccine every baby receives. It protects against sickness. It builds a stronger brain. It gives a child the best possible start in life. And it costs nothing.

Data from the 2023-24 National Demographic and Health Survey reveals a concerning trend. While over 90% of Nigerian mothers do breastfeed, the rates of optimal breastfeeding practices are declining. Early breastfeeding initiation has dropped from 42% in 2018 to 36% in 2023. Furthermore, only 29% of infants are exclusively breastfed for the recommended six months, and a mere 23% continue breastfeeding for the recommended two years. Compounding these challenges, only 12 out of Nigeria's 36 states plus the Federal Capital Territory offer paid maternity leave of up to six months.

Celine Lafoucriere, Chief of UNICEF's Field Office in Lagos, emphasized the profound benefits of breast milk, referring to it as "a baby’s first vaccine." She stated that breastfeeding is one of the most effective and affordable interventions for improving child survival, nutrition, and cognitive development. "Breastmilk is the first vaccine every baby receives. It protects against sickness. It builds a stronger brain. It gives a child the best possible start in life. And it costs nothing," Lafoucriere remarked.

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In southwest Nigeria, with our hospitals, our markets and our busy working mothers, we can change that number. But a mother cannot do this alone.

UNICEF stresses that improving breastfeeding rates requires a collective effort beyond individual mothers. Families, workplaces, health facilities, and communities must foster enabling environments. This includes providing mothers with the necessary space and time to initiate breastfeeding immediately after birth and maintain exclusive breastfeeding for six months without facing undue obstacles. Lafoucriere specifically called on employers to offer breastfeeding breaks and private spaces, urging healthcare workers to ensure babies are put to the breast within the first hour of birth and provide accurate guidance. Support from husbands, grandparents, and religious leaders is also crucial to encourage, rather than question, mothers' breastfeeding decisions.

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To every employer, give your staff the break and the privacy breastfeeding needs. To every health worker, put that baby to the breast within the first hour, every time.