A delegation from Al Dhafra Hospitals Group in Abu Dhabi visited the Sharjah Baby Friendly Office (SBFO) to learn about best practices adopted by the Sharjah Baby-Friendly project to raise awareness about the importance of breastfeeding for infants from birth until the age of two.

The delegation toured several public facilities and institutions in Sharjah designated as ‘Baby Friendly’, including the Mothers’ Room in Al Qasba, a ‘Mother and Baby Friendly Public Place’, the nursery of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Sharjah, which is designated as a ‘Breastfeeding-Friendly Nursery,’ and the Mothers’ Room at Sharjah Museums Authority, a ‘Mother-Friendly Workplace’.

Dr Hessa Khalfan Al Ghazal, Executive Director of the Sharjah Baby Friendly Office stressed the importance of sharing knowledge and expertise among children-focused institutions, in order to consolidate childcare efforts in the UAE, and focus on raising community awareness about the importance of breastfeeding for both mother and baby.

Al Ghazal expressed her happiness with the delegation’s visit and their interest in Sharjah’s accomplishments in the childcare field. She stressed the importance of joining hands to achieve the highest levels of health and care for children, especially in the crucial first months of life.

The visiting delegation included Latifa Al Obaidli, Administrative Assistant in the Marketing Department at Al Dhafra Hospitals Group; Dr. Mai Al Othman, Gynecology Specialist at Al Dhafra Hospitals; Khulood Khalil, Midwife in Al Dhafra Family Medicine Center; and Blessy Rajan, Head Nurse at Al Dhafra Hospitals.

In December 2015, Sharjah was recognised as the world’s first Baby-Friendly City by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) following the successful implementation of its ‘Baby-Friendly Project’ (previously Sharjah Baby Friendly Emirate Campaign) to encourage breastfeeding and support institutional policies that encourage natural breastfeeding and discourage the use of formula milk.

Targeting mothers of newborns aged up to two years, the ‘Sharjah Baby Friendly Project’ was successful in introducing the concept of a baby-friendly city and encouraging breastfeeding practices at both institutional and community levels, by adopting four initiatives that were implemented simultaneously for the first time in the world.

The first initiative, Baby-Friendly Health Facilities, is based on the International Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), launched by WHO and UNICEF in 1991. The remaining three initiatives included ‘Mother-Friendly Workplaces’, ‘Breastfeeding-Friendly Nurseries’, and ‘Mother and Baby Friendly Public Places’.