Community-based strategies for breastfeeding promotion and support in developing countries

Overview

WHO and UNICEF developed the Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding in 2002 to revitalize world attention to the substantial impact of feeding practices on the growth and development, health, and survival of infants and young children. The present review examines the evidence for the contribution that community-based interventions can make to improve infant and young child feeding, and identifies factors that are important to ensure that interventions are successful and sustainable.

The findings show that families and communities are more than simple beneficiaries of interventions; they are also resources to shape the interventions and extend coverage close to where mothers, other caregivers and young children live. It is intended that the experiences presented here will help policy makers, programme planners, and health professionals in the essential and challenging task of translating knowledge into action at all levels: the health system, the community and civil society at large.

The purpose of this document is to provide the rationale and guideposts for community-based interventions to promote and support breastfeeding.