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{
"id": 319564,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/319564/?format=api",
"text_counter": 352,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Githae",
"speaker_title": "The Minister for Finance",
"speaker": {
"id": 159,
"legal_name": "Robinson Njeru Githae",
"slug": "robinson-githae"
},
"content": " Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, this is, indeed, the august House, discussing a very important Bill. I was saying that at the time some of us were born, there were no substitutes for breast milk. Your mother had to breastfeed you. If for some reasons she was unable to do so, it was possible to get a substitute mother to breastfeed you. You would not be fed on any other milk. That was our traditional way of doing things. Thereafter, formula for babies came. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I do not know who came up with the idea that if you are modern girl, you do not breast feed but instead you go for breast milk substitutes; that, if you breastfeed, your breasts will sag. I do not know who came up with this idea. Breasts cannot sag. That is the way God made them. After breastfeeding, the breasts assume their normal elasticity. Therefore, I would like the Minister to also include provisions for civic education in this Bill, so that we can educate our young mothers on the importance of breastfeeding their children. As the Minister said, it is scientifically proven that if a child is breastfed, it acquires immunity and, therefore, does not suffer from common diseases. So, we need to encourage young mothers to breastfeed their babies. However, since we know that some young mothers may not have adequate milk for their babies, we should continue having breast milk substitutes. I am glad that, for the first time, we are going to have rules and regulations which will determine what constitutes breast milk substitutes and how they should be manufactured. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, lastly, it is important to say that we need to educate young mothers, so that they can know the importance of breastfeeding. Nowadays we do not have substitute mothers who can give breast milk to babies. I would actually have gone for a total ban of milk substitutes and say that every mother must breastfeed her child for at least one year. When we were young, we were breastfed up to the age of three years, after which we went to school. These days babies are being breastfed for only three months. So, there should also be a regulation to say that if a mother has adequate milk, her child must be breastfed for at least a year, and not for the three months maternity leave period. With those remarks, I beg to support."
}