<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large"><br></div>From: <b class="gmail_sendername" dir="auto">World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA)</b> <span dir="auto"><<a href="mailto:waba@waba.org.my">waba@waba.org.my</a>></span><br><div class="gmail_quote"><br><br><u></u>
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Online consultation (until 8 September 2019)<b> </b>- an opportunity for an exclusive breastfeeding indicator in SDG 2
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If we were able to get EBF included as an SDG 2 indicator, it would be an incredible win for our breastfeeding advocacy work. <br>
<br>
What can you do?
<ul>
<li>You can send your comments/inputs individually or on behalf of your organisation to support the inclusion of EBF as an SDG indicator</li>
<li>You can help mobilise some of the Member States (national programme and national statistics offices (especially for the Member States who are currently members of the IAEG-SDG). See the list <a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=da3d058111&e=858833e631" style="color:#26abe2;font-weight:normal;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">here</a>. </li>
</ul>
Here is some rationale for the inclusion of EBF that you may want to build on<br>
<b>Rationale:</b>
<ul>
<li>It is a WHA target that all member states, as well as many development partners, have endorsed.</li>
<li><u>Data availability</u>. there are 140 countries with data on EBF in the UNICEF IYCF database, 69 of these in the last 5 years. EBF is already routinely included in global reports every year, including the Global Nutrition Report, the State of Food Security and Nutrition, and the Global Breastfeeding Scorecard.</li>
<li><u>Importance of breastfeeding and its relevance to other SDGs</u>. It is a key indicator reflecting optimal breastfeeding practices, which is essential to child survival and well-being. Exclusive breastfeeding has the largest potential impact on child mortality of any preventive interventions. The lack of breastfeeding has huge implications for development. It is estimated that not breastfeeding according to recommendation leads to 823,000 deaths in children under five and nearly 100,000 maternal deaths from breast and ovarian cancers and type II diabetes each year. The overall economic loss attributable to inadequate breastfeeding rates is estimated at USD 302 billion in healthcare costs annually.</li>
<li><u>Wording of SDG 2.2</u>. The SDG target calls for ending “all forms of malnutrition” and specifically calls out the nutritional needs of lactating women, but there is currently no consideration given to breastfeeding in the SDG indicators.</li>
</ul>
<br>
If you have little time, you may paste this paragraph:<br>
<br>
Exclusive breastfeeding offers the best source of nutrition for young infants. Breastmilk is more than just food for babies, it is also a potent medicine for disease prevention that is tailored to the needs of each child; breast milk shapes the baby’s microbiome, strengthens the immune system, and reduces the risk of developing chronic diseases. There is overwhelming evidence that breastfeeding is a cornerstone of child survival; in low- and middle-income countries, infants who received foods and liquids in addition to breastmilk before 6 months were up to 2.8 times more likely to die than those who were exclusively breastfed (Sankar et al. 2017). It protects against pneumonia and diarrhoea, the two leading killers of children under five and the impact on childhood infections exist in rich and poor countries alike. The UK Millennium Cohort Survey estimated that if all children in the United Kingdom were breastfed exclusively for six months, it could prevent 53 per cent of hospital admissions for diarrhoea, and 27 per cent of hospitalizations for lower respiratory infections each month (Quigley et al 2007). In addition to giving every child the same opportunity to thrive, breastfeeding is one of the smartest investments to boost human capital and stimulate economic growth; with low rates of breastfeeding being responsible for losses of more than $230 billion annually in high-income countries, and $70 billion annually in low- and middle-income countries (Rollins et al. 2016). Furthermore, monitoring of exclusive breastfeeding is not only technically feasible due to availability of a global database with estimates for approximately 140 countries, but politically feasible given commitment of all member states to regularly report on this indicator until at least 2030 through the World Health Assembly (WHA) Nutrition Targets. Additionally, it is a long-standing standard indicator for which a time series is available for a large number of countries. <br>
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Remember that the consultation will run through <b>8 September 2019</b> and can be accessed at <a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=dbaf0de93e&e=858833e631" style="color:#26abe2;font-weight:normal;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">http://bit.ly/2020Review_Consult</a>.<br>
<br>
<br>Amal Omer-Salim, PhD<br>
Executive Director<br>
(WABA)</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" align="center"><br></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></center></div>
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