Federal Government launches 1,000 Days of Life campaign to combat child malnutrition

Unveiled during the 2026 World Breastfeeding Week in Abuja, the initiative aims to promote improved nutrition from pregnancy until a child's second birthday, a critical period for development. Daju Kachollom, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, emphasized the government's commitment to supporting breastfeeding, calling it a vital intervention for child survival. She noted that while nearly 95 percent of Nigerian mothers breastfeed, optimal practices are low, with only 36 percent of newborns breastfed within an hour of birth and 29 percent exclusively breastfed for six months.

Barriers include delayed initiation, cultural beliefs, inadequate counseling, and limited workplace support. The campaign seeks to raise public awareness, encourage healthy nutrition practices, and mobilize communities to adopt evidence-based nutrition behaviors. The Director of the Nutrition Department, Olufunmilola Adegbite, highlighted breastfeeding as an investment in Nigeria's future, while Uju Rochas-Anwukah, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Health, conveyed Vice President Kashim Shettima's view of breastfeeding as a national investment.