Field Stories
Centering women’s voices to drive meaningful change
March 5, 2025
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Story
How can we better support breastfeeding around the world?
This World Breastfeeding Week, we’re highlighting key stories that showcase how Nutrition International advances a supportive environment for breastfeeding around the world. Through partnerships with communities, health systems and governments, we’re helping create sustainable and supportive environments.
Posted on July 29, 2025
Breastfeeding is one of the most impactful investments we can make in the health, development and survival of both children and their mothers. It helps protect against childhood infections, improves cognitive outcomes and reduces long-term health risks for both the baby and the mother. Yet, despite the evidence, more than half of infants globally are still not breastfed in line with World Health Organization recommendations.
Here are five stories and resources that show how we work to protect, promote and support breastfeeding around the world.
1. The power of kangaroo mother care
Video
The life-changing potential of kangaroo mother care
Skin-to-skin contact can make all the difference for babies born prematurely or too small. In Pakistan, where rates of low birthweight and neonatal mortality remain alarmingly high, Nutrition International is supporting the government to expand kangaroo mother care (KMC) and pair it with early initiation of breastfeeding. This proven, effective method places a newborn against their caregiver’s chest to regulate temperature, strengthen immunity and promote breastfeeding. After a successful pilot in three hospitals, the initiative now supports 10 KMC units across five districts, setting the foundation for more babies to survive and thrive.
Watch the video: Kangaroo mother care saves lives in Pakistan
2. What a lack of breastfeeding support is costing the world
What does the global economy lose when breastfeeding isn’t promoted, protected and supported? The Cost of Not Breastfeeding Tool, developed by Nutrition International and Alive & Thrive puts a price tag on it: over US $500B a year in preventable deaths, healthcare costs and lost human potential. With data from more than 180 countries and new features like scenario modelling and expanded impact indicators, the interactive tool equips policymakers with compelling evidence to prioritize breastfeeding in national policies. Because investing in breastfeeding isn’t just good for babies and mothers, it’s a smart, cost-effective strategy for building healthier, more resilient societies.
See what your country stands to gain: Try the tool
3. Peer support strengthens breastfeeding in Ethiopia
In rural Ethiopia, a simple yet powerful platform is changing the course of maternal health one gathering at a time. Through pregnant women conferences, Nutrition International is working with the government to create safe, supportive spaces where expectant mothers come together to learn, share and grow. These peer-led sessions, supported by health care workers, equip women with vital information on nutrition and care-seeking during pregnancy and beyond, including the importance of exclusive breastfeeding. With over 1,300 conferences held so far, thousands of women are empowering each other to give their babies the healthiest start.
Read more: Women at the heart of pregnancy care in Ethiopia
4. Better care, brighter beginnings for expectant mothers in Bangladesh
In Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, the Adopting a Multisectoral Approach for Nutrition (AMAN) project, funded by the Government of Canada, created a lifeline for expectant mothers. By strengthening the capacity of healthcare providers in antenatal counselling, maternal supplementation and practical care, the project helped women safeguard their health and prepare for breastfeeding. With a strong focus on early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding, the initiative supported healthcare workers so mothers can give their babies the healthiest possible start.
Read more: Supporting expectant mothers with comprehensive care in Bangladesh
5. Turning commitments into action
Advocating for stronger support systems around breastfeeding just got a whole lot easier. The Breastfeeding Advocacy Toolkit, developed by the Global Breastfeeding Collective with contributions from Nutrition International, equips advocates, policymakers and partners with a comprehensive set of tools to drive change. From evidence briefs to policy guidance and messaging strategies, the toolkit helps translate global recommendations into effective national action. By making it easier to champion policies that protect, promote and support breastfeeding, this resource helps create an environment where breastfeeding is not only encouraged, but truly supported.
As we observe World Breastfeeding Week, this year’s theme: Prioritize breastfeeding: Create sustainable support systems is a powerful reminder that breastfeeding doesn’t happen in isolation. Women need consistent, informed support to start breastfeeding early and sustain it through the critical early years of a child’s life. At Nutrition International, we’re committed to helping build those systems, whether through policy tools, peer support, health workers training and more.
Learn more about Nutrition International’s work in maternal and newborn health and nutrition.
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