PESHAWAR: The health department has directed authorities concerned to take measures for enforcement of the “Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Protection of Breastfeeding and Child Nutrition Act 2015” with a view to promote breastfeeding and put brakes on a host of ailments.

The directive came in a meeting of the Infant Feeding Board which was chaired by health minister Shahram Tarakai on Tuesday.

According to a statement, the meeting took exception to the non-existence of regulatory mechanism for formula milk due to which the manufacturers had free ride of promotion on media which adversely affected breastfeeding.

The board asked director general health services to form a working group comprising one additional director and a representative each from the pediatricians and international partners and make mechanism to scale up public information about benefits of the mother’s milk.

Similarly, policies and messages promoting breastfeeding should also be developed for dissemination among the public, it said. It also decided to issue instructions to the medical practitioners and health workers in all hospitals across the province that they would not take samples of products from manufacturers and prescribe formula milk to infants.

It was decided to grant the powers and functions of “inspector” to the existing drug inspector cadre officers with immediate effect to check sale of formula milk.

It said that the Health Sector Reforms Unit was tasked to take steps for the revival of the ‘baby friendly hospitals’.

On this occasion, the minister directed to establish day care centres in the teaching hospitals and three divisional hospitals so that working women could keep their infants there while on duty.

It stated that the health department would send recommendations to the chief secretary for considering enhancement of maternity leave to 90 days from the current 45 days.

Published in Dawn December 14th, 2016