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Oyo State Government has achieved 58.7% in the practice of exclusive breastfeeding by women of child bearing age, according to Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN).
The Project Coordinator, Oyo Project Implementation Unit, Dr Khadijah Alarape, disclosed this during a stakeholders meeting of state committee on food and nutrition (SCFN), organised by ANRiN, which was held at Owu Crown Hotel, Ibadan, on Thursday.
Alarape, who was elated with the recent data from MICS 2022 Survey, said the increase shows pregnant and lactating women are now aware of the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding for the general well-being of their children.
She appreciated Governor Seyi Makinde for his support in increasing the maternity leave for pregnant women from three months to six months and also ANRiN for implementing Seven Basic Package of Nutritional Services across the 33 local governments in the state.
According to her, the Seven Basic Package of Nutritional Services has really helped the status of exclusive breastfeeding in the state in the last two years.
“The state governor should be thanked for his help in granting six months maternity leave for our mothers. This has really helped. This can be confirmed from available statistics on nutrition indices that the state is doing well as far as exclusive breastfeeding is concerned. Although we need to work more on the rate of stunting in the state,” she said.
While calling for more collaboration from the SCFN members, Alarape said it is imperative for every line ministries on nutrition to have a budgetary allocation for Nnutrition activities in their various MDAs.
She reiterated ANRiN’s efforts at providing cost effective nutritional services to pregnant and lactating women, adolescent girls as well as children under five across the state.
Alarape also revealed that two non-state actors, Solina Health Ltd and Save the Children, are currently working in communities across the state, giving pregnant and lactating mothers as well as children under five Basic Package of Nutritional Services.
In his welcome address, the Director of Development Partners, Ministry of Budget and Planning, Mr. Moruf Oyetunji, said the meeting is a statutory one, which is held quarterly to review nutritional intervention and address malnutrition in the state.
Meanwhile, Oyo State Government has assured the users of the Oyo-Fasola-Iseyin road and its environs that the newly constructed Ogun River bridge along the road would be opened to traffic soon as work is close to completion.
The assurance was made by the Commissioner for Public Works and Transport, Professor Dahud Sangodoyin, during an inspection of the 34.8 km Oyo-Fasola-Iseyin road construction, which started in 2021.
While commending Governor Makinde for his relentless efforts in improing the state’s agriculture and economy through the construction of good roads, Sangodoyin implored the citizens to protect any facility the government provides so there won’t be need for unnecessary repair.