Uzbekistan to Approve National Program to Support Breastfeeding

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Uzbekistan will approve a national program to support breastfeeding aimed at raising public awareness and strengthening infant health. The announcement was made on the Uzbekistan 24 TV channel by Dilfuza Niyozova, an official at the Agency for Strategic Reforms under the President.

According to her, the level of breastfeeding in the country has declined noticeably in recent years. In response, a comprehensive set of measures has been developed, including the training of medical personnel based on clinical protocols of the World Health Organization and UNICEF, the preparation of international breastfeeding consultants, and the reintroduction of certification for perinatal centers that create conditions for natural infant feeding.

As part of the program, 18 sanitary rules and regulations will be updated in line with WHO requirements and Codex Alimentarius standards, ensuring that supplementary feeding products comply with international norms.

Nilufar Akhmedova, Chief Specialist in Pediatric Nutrition at the Ministry of Health, noted that while 75 percent of newborns are put to the breast within the first hours after birth, only a quarter of children under six months are exclusively breastfed. The goal is to increase this figure to 70 percent by 2030. To achieve it, a draft law introducing amendments to breastfeeding-related legislation has been prepared, along with educational materials for doctors and parents.

Regulations governing the production, storage, and distribution of infant food products will be revised. Certification for institutions that promote breastfeeding will cover 230 perinatal centers and maternity hospitals across the country.

Minister of Health Asilbek Khudayarov stressed that the active promotion of breast milk substitutes in recent years has led to an increase in artificial feeding. “Within the framework of the program, we will launch a large-scale information campaign to explain to mothers the benefits of breastfeeding,” he said.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, having approved the initiative, also instructed that measures be strengthened to bring healthcare closer to the population, reduce mortality from noncommunicable diseases, and improve the health of the younger generation.