Speaking during a road walk to commemorate the global campaign for the 2026 Breastfeeding Week in Kano, the Chief of UNICEF Kano Field Office, Mr Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, described breastfeeding as the most sustainable source of nutrition for infants and a critical intervention for reducing maternal and child mortality.
He said this year’s theme, “Breastfeeding for a Sustainable Start in Life: Strengthen What Works,” underscores the need to invest in proven strategies that improve child survival and development.
Rehman commended mothers across the state for their commitment to breastfeeding, noting that breast milk serves as a baby’s first vaccine, protecting children from diseases, malnutrition and preventable deaths while enhancing cognitive development and future productivity.
He mentioned that breastfeeding also offers significant health benefits for mothers, including reduced risks of postpartum complications, breast and ovarian cancers, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
Despite widespread breastfeeding in Nigeria, a UNICEF official expressed concern over low rates of optimal breastfeeding practices.
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According to him, while more than 90 percent of Nigerian mothers breastfeed their children, fewer than one in ten newborns are breastfed within the first hour of birth, and only about one in ten infants are exclusively breastfed during their first six months of life.
Rehman stressed that successful breastfeeding requires collective support from families, healthcare providers, employers and governments, rather than placing the responsibility solely on mothers.
He called on states yet to adopt six months of paid maternity leave, including Kano, Jigawa and Katsina, to implement the policy, noting that extended maternity leave enables mothers to exclusively breastfeed their babies for the recommended six months.
He also urged employers to provide breastfeeding-friendly workplaces through flexible work schedules, nursing breaks, lactation rooms and facilities for storing expressed breast milk.
Also speaking, Kano State Nutrition Officer, Aishatu Suleiman, said the campaign aims to promote exclusive breastfeeding from birth to six months and encourage continued breastfeeding up to two years to improve child nutrition.
She noted that exclusive breastfeeding supplies all the nutrients required by newborns, boosts immunity and plays a vital role in preventing malnutrition, which remains a major public health challenge in Kano State.
