Maryam Diallo
PRESS RELEASE
Interfaith Mediation Centre (IMC) Commemorates World Breastfeeding Week, Calls for Stronger Family and Community Support for Exclusive Breastfeeding
Kaduna, Nigeria – August 2026
As the world commemorates World Breastfeeding Week 2026, the Interfaith Mediation Centre (IMC), through its Women Department under the Faith and Cultural Champions (FCC) Project, joins the global community in highlighting the life-saving benefits of breastfeeding and calling on families, faith leaders, traditional institutions, communities, and government stakeholders to strengthen support systems that enable mothers to exclusively breastfeed their babies.
Breastfeeding remains one of the most effective, accessible, and affordable interventions for improving maternal, newborn, and child health. Exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months of life provides infants with essential nutrients and antibodies required for healthy growth and development, protects them against infections and malnutrition, and contributes significantly to reducing infant and child mortality. Beyond its benefits for children, breastfeeding also supports maternal health by promoting recovery after childbirth and reducing the risk of certain health conditions.
Speaking on the importance of this year’s commemoration, the Co-Executive Director of IMC, Malam Hayatu Ashafa, emphasized that improving maternal and child health requires collective responsibility and sustained action beyond the health sector.
“Breastfeeding is not only a health issue; it is a family and community responsibility. Husbands, religious leaders, traditional institutions, health workers, and community members all have important roles to play in creating an enabling environment where mothers receive the encouragement, support, and resources needed to exclusively breastfeed their babies. Through the FCC Project, IMC continues to promote positive social norms that encourage antenatal care, skilled facility delivery, childbirth spacing, and spousal communication as pathways to healthier families.”
Through the Faith and Cultural Champions (FCC) Project, implemented in selected communities across Kaduna State, IMC continues to leverage faith and cultural structures to promote positive behavioural change in maternal, newborn, and child health. Religious and traditional leaders have been engaged to integrate key health messages into sermons, community dialogues, women’s gatherings, and youth engagements.
Meanwhile, trained community champions continue to conduct grassroots sensitization activities to reinforce awareness and encourage the adoption of healthy family practices, ensuring that critical maternal and child health information reaches families at the community level.
The Women Department of IMC noted that exclusive breastfeeding is closely linked to other maternal and child health interventions promoted under the FCC Project, including regular Antenatal Care (ANC), birth preparedness, skilled facility delivery, Childbirth Spacing (CBS), and effective spousal communication. These interventions collectively contribute to healthier pregnancies, safer deliveries, improved child survival, and stronger families.
As part of the World Breastfeeding Week 2026 commemoration, IMC calls on:
Mothers to exclusively breastfeed their babies for the first six months of life and continue breastfeeding alongside appropriate complementary feeding as recommended by health professionals.
Husbands and family members to provide emotional, financial, and practical support to breastfeeding mothers and help create a supportive environment that enables successful breastfeeding.
Religious and traditional leaders to continue using their trusted platforms to promote positive maternal, newborn, and child health practices and address harmful beliefs and misconceptions.
Health workers to provide quality, respectful, and mother-friendly healthcare services that encourage and support breastfeeding mothers.
Government institutions and development partners to strengthen investments in policies, programmes, and community-based initiatives that promote breastfeeding, maternal health services, and public awareness.
IMC reaffirms its commitment to working with communities, faith institutions, traditional leaders, government agencies, media organizations, and development partners to improve maternal and child health outcomes across Kaduna State through inclusive, faith-sensitive, and community-driven approaches.
Together, we can create supportive environments where every mother is empowered to breastfeed successfully and every child has the opportunity to survive, grow, and thrive.
Signed:
Fadila Bukar
Head, Women Department
Interfaith Mediation Centre (IMC), Kaduna
August 2026
