Kinshasa, August 6th, 2025 (CPA).- 59% of children are exclusively breastfed during the first 6 months in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the cpa has learned on Tuesday during an interview in Kinshasa with a health source.‘59% of children are exclusively breastfed during the first six months of their lives, and breastfeeding continues at 67%,’ has said Nelly Akwebiwa, head of documentation and archiving service at the communications department of the National Nutrition Programme (Pronanut).
Speaking on the occasion of World Breastfeeding Week, she said that in order to increase the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in DRC, Pronanut is lobbying partners to raise funds to raise awareness among women to opt for exclusive breastfeeding. ‘Last year, we raised awareness about nutrition in ministries, particularly the Ministry in charge of Gender, Economy, Justice and the Congolese Control Office (OCC),’ she has added. For Ms Akwebiwa, World Breastfeeding Week was initiated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to promote this vital practice. ‘Breastfeeding ensures the healthy growth of children, supports mothers who breastfeed and face many social and economic barriers in their communities, and aims to address national nutrition issues,’ she has said.This celebration helps Pronanut raise funds from partners and decision-makers to support the programme.
The benefits
Furthermore, Nelly Akwebiwa, head of documentation and archiving service at the communications department of the National Nutrition Programme (Ponanut), argued that breastfeeding has four benefits: for the child, for the mother, for the family and for the community. Breastfeeding, she has said, is beneficial for the family because it helps them save money by avoiding the purchase of breast milk substitutes, and it protects the child from illness because well-breastfed children are less likely to fall ill.
According to Ms Akwebiwa, breast milk facilitates the expulsion of the placenta, prevents postpartum haemorrhaging and contains all the nutrients necessary for good health. ‘All children who have been exclusively breastfed for up to six months are very intelligent and do not encounter many difficulties in their growth,’ she has said. World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from August 1st,to 7th. It is a global campaign aimed at encouraging breastfeeding and improving infant health. The main objective is to raise public awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding and to support mothers in this practice, according to the WHO.