Breastfeeding Pivotal To Sustainable Health, Says UNICEF

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has emphasised that breastfeeding plays a vital role in building a healthy and sustainable nation.

UNICEF made this known at a two-day media dialogue to mark the 2026 World Breastfeeding Week in Enugu.

The dialogue, organised in collaboration with the Broadcasting Corporation of Abia (BCA), was supported by the US Mission in Nigeria, the Child Nutrition Fund, the Gates Foundation, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Speaking on the theme: ‘Breastfeeding for a Sustainable Start in Life: Strengthen What Works’, UNICEF Nutrition Specialist, Enugu Field Office, Mrs Ngozi Onuorah, said that the Week was meant to raise awareness about the significance of breastfeeding in society.

She said that breast milk contains all the nutrients a baby needs to grow and develop within the first six months postpartum, adding that it is the most effective way to ensure the child’s healthy development.

She urged the media to shape public opinion on breastfeeding, correct misinformation, promote positive norms, hold institutions accountable, amplify mothers’ voices, and showcase success stories of proper breastfeeding.

“Breastfeeding is nature’s gold; it boosts the baby’s immunity, and it creates a natural bond between mother and child.

“Exclusive breastfeeding is a clean and safe source of food, helps to reduce breast cancer, protects the environment 100 per cent and helps parents save the money that would have been spent on packaged foods”, she said.

Speaking, Dr Chikezie Obasi, a consultant public health physician in the Department of Community Medicine, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu, stressed the need for mothers to breastfeed their babies from the first hour post-delivery to six months in the first instance.

He advised mothers to jettison the practice of weaning their babies who are less than two years old, but to continue breastfeeding them until they are two years old and beyond.

In his comment, Dr Hillary Ozoh, UNICEF’s Social Behaviour Change Specialist, stressed that breastfeeding is important for every mother, as it helps shape the baby’s growth and development, and called for support for lactating mothers.

Speaking on behalf of the BCA, Okezie Nkpa, UNICEF’s Desk Officer at the station, reaffirmed the organisation’s support for exclusive breastfeeding and pledged to continue accelerating UNICEF’s efforts.

In her contribution, UNICEF Communication Officer, Enugu Field Office, Dr Ijeoma Onuoha -Ogwe, charged journalists in states under the Enugu field office, Enugu, Cross River, Rivers, Abia, Imo, Benue, Anambra, Ebonyi, and Kogi, to utilise the gains of the meeting to become change agents in their respective vicinities.