<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large"><br></div>From: <b class="gmail_sendername" dir="auto">Pei Ching Chuah</b> <span dir="auto"><<a href="mailto:peiching.chuah@waba.org.my">peiching.chuah@waba.org.my</a>></span><br><div class="gmail_quote"><br><div dir="ltr"><div style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif">----------------------------------</div><div style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif"><br></div><div style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif" align="center"><b><span style="font-size:18pt;line-height:107%;font-family:Tahoma,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,112,192);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">40th Anniversary of the Code - Protecting
Breastfeeding Against Aggressive BMS Marketing</span></b></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">The current global scenario with
slow progress in improving breastfeeding rates, a growing breastmilk
substitutes (BMS) industry and ongoing emergencies is a real concern. </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=ebb809cd72&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">BMS
companies have continuously failed to adhere </span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">to the </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=6617e3758a&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">International
Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and relevant World Health Assembly
(WHA) resolutions</span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> (the Code), which contributes to poor nutrition and, in
many cases, preventable deaths in infants and young children. More than </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=d918166d6c&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">800,000
lives are lost</span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> each year due to suboptimal breastfeeding, mostly
because of severe diarrhea, lung infections in infants, and breast cancer in
mothers. Breastfeeding is one of the best investments for saving infant lives
and improving the health, social and economic development of individuals and
nations.</span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64)">An
enabling environment for breastfeeding requires an essential package of
interventions: maternity/parental protection, training of health professionals
and community workers, the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), access to
breastfeeding counselling as well as implementation and monitoring of the Code.</span><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"></span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64)">This
year marks the 40th anniversary of the adoption of the Code by the 34th World
Health Assembly.</span></b><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64)"><br>
<br>
The Code is an important tool to achieve optimal health and nutrition by
protecting breastfeeding and by ensuring the proper use of breast-milk
substitutes (BMS) by restricting promotions that target the general public,
mothers and health workers. To date, of the 136 countries having legal measures
on the Code in place, only 79 have an overall prohibition on the use of health
facilities for promotion and only 30 have measures that call for a full
prohibition of all gifts or incentives for health workers. Although there has
been some progress in a number of countries, in many, the Code is <a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=f0ca43cd8e&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38)">poorly monitored and enforced</span></a>.</span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">Over the years, WABA has
highlighted the importance of the Code and its implementation during </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=c67ed04405&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">World
Breastfeeding Week</span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">.  </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=67b9c00196&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">#WBW2021</span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> focuses on how breastfeeding contributes to
the survival, health and wellbeing of all, and the imperative to protect and
support breastfeeding worldwide.</span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">On this 40th anniversary of the
Code, WABA urges every country to improve implementation, monitoring and
enforcement of the Code. It is vital to ensure that the Code is fully
implemented and monitored to curb the aggressive marketing of breastmilk substitutes
which creates a major barrier to breastfeeding in all  countries. We
all have a role to play in protecting breastfeeding, let’s work together to
speed up Code implementation around the world.</span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">Register to attend the 40th
anniversary of the Code virtual celebration. We’ll reflect on our successes to
make the next 40 years even stronger. #BMSCodeAt40 </span><a href="https://waba.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9c4737de875c6fa12b87991e8&id=5bb36437b6&e=858833e631" style="color:blue" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(197,46,38);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;text-decoration-line:none">https://bit.ly/335G0ms</span></a><span style="color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> </span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;line-height:107%;font-family:Tahoma,sans-serif;color:rgb(64,64,64);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> </span></p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">#BMSCodeAt40 
#BabiesBeforeProfits #BMSCode</p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0cm 0cm 8pt;line-height:107%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">#WBW2021 #WABA #ProtectBreastfeeding #SharedResponsibility
#breastfeeding #SDGs</p></div><br></div></div></div>