In conjunction with World Breastfeeding Week 2024, the Malaysia Lactation Consultants Association (MALCA) aims to create a supportive environment where all mothers can start and continue breastfeeding, regardless of their circumstances.
MALCA highlights the critical need to address the disparities in breastfeeding support that affect women. These disparities include challenges faced by working mothers due to inadequate policies and facilities, sociocultural norms that hinder breastfeeding practices, and inconsistent support from healthcare providers.
The association, which consists of International Board Certified Lactation Consultants, is dedicated to promoting initiatives that provide universal access to breastfeeding support, empower communities for sustainable change, and advocate for policies that eliminate barriers to breastfeeding. By integrating these strategies, MALCA aims to create an environment where all mothers can start and continue breastfeeding, regardless of their circumstances.
“As we champion the theme ‘Closing the Gap: Breastfeeding Support for All’ during World Breastfeeding Week 2024, it is imperative to emphasise specific disparities in breastfeeding support,” the association stated.
“For instance, the urban poor often struggle with limited access to protected maternity benefits, which can force mothers to return to work prematurely, thereby hampering their ability to continue breastfeeding.”
“Additionally, informal workers, such as contract and daily-paid employees, frequently lack adequate maternity leave benefits, which can significantly impact their breastfeeding journey.”
These examples highlight the urgent need for comprehensive policies and supportive practices that ensure all mothers, regardless of their economic status or employment type, have equal access to the resources and support necessary to sustain breastfeeding.
MALCA is committed to addressing these challenges by advocating for support systems and engaging stakeholders across sectors to foster a conducive environment for mothers to nurture their children through breastfeeding.
Established last December, the association invites stakeholders to join them in their initiative to promote breastfeeding excellence, support breastfeeding families, and close the gap in breastfeeding inequalities.
“Together, let’s work towards a future where children have access to optimal breastfeeding support, and mothers can breastfeed with confidence and dignity,” the association said.
In 2022, the Malaysian Breastfeeding Peer Counsellor Association told Twentytwo13 that the country currently lacks laws to protect breastfeeding mothers. Its president, Dr Nadrah Arfizah Arifin, stated there were no laws to compel employers to provide proper facilities at the workplace for nursing mothers, nor laws to penalise formula milk companies that use aggressive and illegal methods to promote their products to mothers.
Dr Nadrah said the country has only codes and policies, including the Malaysian National Breastfeeding Policy introduced in 1993 and revised in 2005.
In 2018, breastfeeding advocates in Malaysia said urban poor mothers were not equipped with the right information, confidence, and tools to ensure their babies are breastfed, as reported by Twentytwo13. This followed a Unicef Malaysia study published in February that year, which found the prevalence of malnutrition increased among children aged five and below residing in low-cost flats in Kuala Lumpur.
