National Strategic Plan of Action for Breastfeeding 2008-2012 (May 2009)

La Leche League New Zealand welcomes the National Strategic Plan of Action for Breastfeeding 2008-2012 which has now been released to the public.  It can be viewed on the Ministry of Health website at www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/indexmh/nbc-plan.   The Plan was formulated by the National Breastfeeding Advisory Committee during 2006 to 2008, and has already been put to use by the twenty-one District Health Boards as background to the formulation of their Breastfeeding Action Plans. 

 

LLLNZ spokesperson, Brylin Highton says:

 

"La Leche League supporters will welcome many features of the Plan, such as:

• the overarching vision that breastfeeding is valued, protected, promoted and supported by the whole of society;
• the placing of the mother-child relationship at the centre of all approaches and activities, and the important role of fathers, family and whanau in supporting women to breastfeed;
• the focus on embedding breastfeeding knowledge in families and communities to create a sustainable breastfeeding culture;
• support for the recommendations of the WHO Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding: exclusive breastfeeding for six months and breastfeeding continuing for up to two years of age and beyond;
• the advice that New Zealand falls short of meeting the requirements of the WHO International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, and that monitoring is required to determine the extent of the shortcoming."

 

The National Breastfeeding Advisory Committee included LLLNZ Director, Barbara Sturmfels and LLLNZ Board of Consultants members Annette Beasley and Judith Galtry.  Barbara and Board of Consultants member Carol Bartle have been appointed members of the National Breastfeeding Committee, the successor to the Advisory Committee, which has a focus on overseeing the implementation of the Plan.