Economy
Expert Reveals How Community Support Crucial To Improved Breastfeeding, Maternal Health
Expert Reveals How Community Support Crucial To Improved Breastfeeding, Maternal Health
Expert reveals how community support crucial to improved breastfeeding, maternal health. She called on policymakers to prioritise paid maternity leave and breastfeeding-friendly workplace policies.
Khadijat Adeleye, a public health expert, says sustained support across family, community, workplace, health systems and policy levels are crucial to improving breastfeeding rates and maternal health outcomes.
Ms Adeleye, a maternal health advocate, said this in an interview with journalists on Sunday in Abuja.
She spoke as part of activities to mark the 2025 World Breastfeeding Week.
This year’s theme for World Breastfeeding Week, which will be observed from August 1st to 7th, is “Let’s Make Breastfeeding and Work, Work!”
The theme stresses the need to create supportive environments that enable mothers to breastfeed while balancing work commitments successfully.
The campaign highlights the importance of essential maternity rights and workplace accommodation to ensure that mothers can continue breastfeeding for as long as they choose.
Ms Adeleye said that while exclusive breastfeeding is one of the most effective interventions for reducing infant mortality, it remains underutilised in Nigeria due to fragmented support systems.
“We can not expect mothers to successfully breastfeed without consistent encouragement and structures in place, whether at home, work or the health facility.
“Support must be collective, continuous, and culturally sensitive.
“According to the 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, only 29 per cent of Nigerian infants under six months are exclusively breastfed.
“That is well below the global target of 50 per cent by 2025 set by the World Health Organisation (WHO), ” she said.
She said that mothers were more likely to initiate and sustain breastfeeding when they receive early guidance from health workers, encouragement from family members, and practical support from employers.
She said that support from employers included flexible work hours and breastfeeding spaces.
Ms Adeleye also pointed to the success of mother support groups in rural areas, particularly in Benue and Kaduna States.
According to her, through such groups, community-driven initiatives have raised exclusive breastfeeding rates through peer counselling and household visits.
She urged the government to fully enforce the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, while promoting baby-friendly hospital initiatives across the country.
“Nigeria must invest in supportive systems that protect breastfeeding from being undermined by commercial interests and social pressures,” she said.
She further called on policymakers to prioritise paid maternity leave and breastfeeding-friendly workplace policies, warning that the lack of structural support continues to put both mothers and babies at risk.
She stressed the need for workplace-friendly breastfeeding policies in Nigeria. In alignment with this year’s World Breastfeeding Week theme.
“Making breastfeeding at work, work, makes societies work.

Expert Reveals How Community Support Crucial To Improved Breastfeeding
“Breastfeeding provides vital health and nutritional benefits for children with positive lifelong impacts, building healthier populations and workforces for the future,” she said.
She said that women should not have to choose between breastfeeding their children and keeping their jobs, as support is possible regardless of workplace, sector or contract type.
“Effective maternity protections improve children’s and women’s health and increase breastfeeding rates.
“Today, more than half a billion working women globally lack access to vital maternity provisions. Many more face limited or no support when they return to work,” she said.
Ms Adeleye recommended that all women, regardless of the nature of their work, should have at least 18 weeks, and preferably more than six months, of paid maternity leave.
She also advocated for paid time off to breastfeed or express milk after returning to work, along with flexible return-to-work options.
She called policymakers to strengthen existing labour laws and health sector policies to ensure that both formal and informal sector workers receive adequate breastfeeding support.
“Without such provisions, national efforts to improve maternal and child health may continue to fall short,” she said.
Economy
Lagos Assembly Strongly Seeks Suspension Of Makoko Demolition
Lagos Assembly Strongly Seeks Suspension Of Makoko Demolition
Lagos assembly strongly seeks suspension of Makoko demolition. The Lagos state house of assembly has called for the suspension of demolition activities in Makoko, Oko-Agbon and Shogunro waterfront communities following protests by displaced residents and growing public concern over the exercise.
The call was announced on Tuesday by Noheem Adams, chairman of an ad hoc committee set up by Mudashiru Obasa, speaker of the house, during a stakeholders’ meeting held at the Lateef Jakande auditorium.
Adams called on all state ministries to cease demolition work and promised compensation to the affected residents.
“On behalf of the speaker and all 40 members of the house, we are directing that all demolitions in Makoko, Oko-Agbon, and Shogunro communities should stop from today until further notice,” New Telegraph quoted Adams as saying.
He called for transparency by demanding the full list of taskforce members and the criteria used for engagement, insisting that residents must be actively involved in the process.
“That the taskforce that was constituted, we want to see the list of the taskforce because we want the residents to be duly involved and to be carried along. So we want to have the schedule of those task forces and the criteria for those that we are inviting,” Adams added.

Lagos Assembly
“To the residents of Makoko, Oko-Agbon and Shogunro communities, as your representatives, we are giving you all assurances that they will stop demolitions henceforth and there will be compensations for all those whose properties have been demolished.”
Stephen Ogundipe, member of the ad-hoc, said there is need for clear communication, adding that residents targeted for relocation or redevelopment must be informed of the government’s plans in advance.
Babatunde Olajide, special adviser to governor of Lagos on E-GIS and urban renewal, confirmed that $2 million had been earmarked since 2021 to transform Makoko into a modern, internationally compliant water city.
He said enumeration of affected properties is underway and reiterated the administration’s commitment to handling the situation with a human face, prioritizing resident safety and fair compensation.
Yusuf Sagra, baale of Makoko, described the assembly’s decision as a “word of peace,” while Orioye Ogungbure, another leader of the community, praised the “democratic responsiveness” of the government.
Crime
EFCC Arrests Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa for Alleged Naira Mutilation In Viral Video
EFCC Arrests Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa for Alleged Naira Mutilation In Viral Video
EFCC arrests Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa for alleged naira mutilation in viral video. The Kano Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, February 3, 2026 arrested a Kannywood Star, Samha Inuwa over alleged Naira mutilation.
Inuwa was arrested following a viral video circulated on social media platforms where she was seen conspicuously cleaning mucus from her nose using Naira notes.

EFCC
Following the release of the viral video, the Commission swung into action by tracing and subsequently arrested her to answer questions.
She is currently being held at the Commission’s detention facility while investigation is ongoing.
The suspect will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
Dele Oyewale
Head, Media & Publicity
February 3, 2026
Economy
Access Bank Gets New Board Chair Ifeyinwa Osime
Access Bank Gets New Board Chair Ifeyinwa Osime
Access Bank gets new board chair Ifeyinwa Osime. Access Bank Plc has appointed Ifeyinwa Osime as chair of the board of directors, following the retirement of Paul Usoro, on January 29.
Access Bank Plc has appointed Ifeyinwa Osime as chair of the board of directors, following the retirement of Paul Usoro, on January 29, according to a statement to the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. on Monday.
Ms Osime, a legal practitioner, joined Access Bank’s board in November 2019 as an independent non-executive director and had chaired its Human Resources and Sustainability Committee and the Governance, Nomination, and Remuneration Committee. This role made her contribute significantly to the bank’s corporate governance, leadership development, and sustainability initiatives.
Additionally, Ms Osime is a director at Ebudo Trust Ltd. and a partner at McPherson Legal Practitioners, where she advises on corporate and commercial matters and contributes to strategic leadership.
She is also a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, the Women Corporate Directors, Nigeria Chapter, and the Chartered Institute of Directors, Nigeria, where she serves on the Executive Committee of the Women Sectoral Group.

Access Bank Gets New Board Chair Ifeyinwa Osime
Beyond her professional responsibilities, Ms Osime is committed to mentoring youths and is actively involved in the Autism and Developmental Delays Support Community, reflecting her dedication to inclusion and social impact.
Speaking on her appointment, the group chairman, Aigboje Aig-lmoukhuede, said, “Mrs Osime is a principled and experienced leader with a deep understanding of the Bank’s strategy and values.
“She has demonstrated strong commitment to the bank’s vision and mission, and I am confident that, under her leadership, the bank will continue to advance its strategic objectives of delivering sustainable value to shareholders and other stakeholders in the pursuit of its vision to become the world’s most respected African bank.”
Mr Aig-lmoukhuede also congratulated Mr Usoro on the completion of his tenure and on his exemplary leadership, dedication, and significant contributions to the group, saying he remains a valued member of the Access family.
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