The Kwara government has announced the adoption of six months’ maternity leave for civil servants.

Kwara first lady Olufolake Abdulrazaq announced this at the flag-off of the 2023 World Breastfeeding Week and the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week in Ilorin.

Mr Abdulrazaq said the week would highlight the huge benefits breastfeeding could bring to the health and welfare of babies and maternal health, focusing on good nutrition, poverty reduction and food security.

She added that working mothers in Kwara usually went on three months of maternity leave before the adoption of six months.

According to her, it has become imperative to upscale advocacies to enable exclusive breastfeeding with due consideration for working mothers collectively.

”World breastfeeding week has the dual goal of improving the health of babies and promoting, protecting and supporting the rights of women to breastfeed anywhere and at any time,” stated the Kwara first lady. ”Effective maternity protection, you will agree with me stand to improve health and well-being outcomes of breastfeeding on infants, young children, mothers, families and the society at large.”

She commended Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq for approving the extension of maternity leave for nursing mothers and setting up crèches in the various ministries.

The first lady said this would encourage mothers to breastfeed their babies at work.

(NAN)