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On 3 April, (right) Zainab Kamara, supported by her mother, eastfeeds one of her twin sons, 3-month-old Alhassan Cargo, in Karineh Village in Magbema Chiefdom, Kambia District.

New analysis shows an investment of HK$36.7 (US$4.7) per newborn could generate HK$2,340 billion (US$300 billion) in economic gains by 2025.

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GENEVA/NEW YORK/HONG KONG, 1 August 2017 – No country in the world fully meets recommended standards for eastfeeding, according to a new report by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with the Global Breastfeeding Collective, a new initiative to increase global eastfeeding rates.

The Global Breastfeeding Scorecard, which evaluated 194 nations, found that only 40 per cent of children younger than six months are eastfed exclusively (given nothing but east milk) and only 23 countries have exclusive eastfeeding rates above 60 per cent.

Evidence shows that eastfeeding has cognitive and health benefits for both infants and their mothers. It is especially critical during the first six months of life, helping prevent diarrhoea and pneumonia, two major causes of death in infants. Mothers who eastfeed have a reduced risk of ovarian and east cancer, two leading causes of death among women.

“Breastfeeding gives babies the best possible start in life,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gheeyesus, Director-General of WHO. “Breastmilk works like a baby’s first vaccine, protecting infants from potentially deadly diseases and giving them all the nourishment they need to survive and thrive.”

The scorecard was released at the start of World Breastfeeding Week alongside a new analysis demonstrating that an annual investment of only HK$36.7 (US$4.7) per newborn is required to increase the global rate of exclusive eastfeeding among children under six months to 50 per cent by 2025.

Nurturing the Health and Wealth of Nations: The Investment Case for Breastfeeding, suggests that meeting this target could save the lives of 520,000 children under the age of five and potentially generate HK$2,340 billion (US$300 billion) billion in economic gains over 10 years, as a result of reduced illness and health care costs and increased productivity.

“Breastfeeding is one of the most effective – and cost effective – investments nations can make in the health of their youngest members and the future health of their economies and societies,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake. “By failing to invest in eastfeeding, we are failing mothers and their babies – and paying a double price: in lost lives and in lost opportunity.”

The investment case shows that in five of the world’s largest emerging economies—China, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Nigeria—the lack of investment in eastfeeding results in an estimated 236,000 child deaths per year and HK$928.2 billion (US$119 billion) in economic losses.

Globally, investment in eastfeeding is far too low. Each year, governments in lower- and middle-income countries spend approximately HK$1.95 billion (US$250 million) on eastfeeding programs; and donors provide only an additional HK$663 million (US$85 million).

The Global Breastfeeding Collective is calling on countries to:

• Increase funding to raise eastfeeding rates from birth through two years. • Fully implement the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and relevant World Health Assembly resolutions through strong legal measures that are enforced and independently monitored by organizations free from conflicts of interest. • Enact paid family leave and workplace eastfeeding policies, building on the International Labour Organization’s maternity protection guidelines as a minimum requirement, including provisions for the informal sector. • Implement the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding in maternity facilities, including providing eastmilk for sick and vulnerable newborns. Improve access to skilled eastfeeding counselling as part of comprehensive eastfeeding policies and programmes in health facilities. • Strengthen links between health facilities and communities, and encourage community networks that protect, promote, and support eastfeeding. • Strengthen monitoring systems that track the progress of policies, programmes, and funding towards achieving both national and global eastfeeding targets.

Breastfeeding is critical for the achievement of many of the Sustainable Development Goals. It improves nutrition (SDG2), prevents child mortality and decreases the risk of non-communicable diseases (SDG3), and supports cognitive development and education (SDG4). Breastfeeding is also an enabler to ending poverty, promoting economic growth and reducing inequalities.