Rethinking breastfeeding...

 Last Women’s Month, I initiated a conversation in a WhatsApp group comprising professional working women. As everyone exchanged 'Happy Women’s Month' messages, I responded that my wish for career women on Women’s Month extends beyond the festivities, flowers, and wellness days that companies organize for their female employees. Instead, I advocated for policy changes to create a more conducive workplace for women, acknowledging progress while persistently pushing for further improvements.

The World Health Organization recommends 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding, yet women are granted only 3 months of paid maternity leave. This implies that, for the remaining 3 months, women who choose to exclusively breastfeed must regularly express milk during the working day. However, how many workplaces provide breastfeeding facilities?

While breastfeeding mothers with offices are fortunate, the modern workspace is increasingly adopting open-plan layouts. So, what are women in shared office spaces supposed to do? I know women who have resorted to expressing milk in bathrooms or their cars because no suitable space is available.

A breastfeeding room should be considered as basic as the sanitary bins found in women's bathroom facilities. Creating a breastfeeding room is not complicated; all you need is a couch, a fridge, and a sink.

I know of a woman who had returned to work and had to undertake a 3-day working trip. She asked if the organization would allow her to travel with her helper and baby to avoid interrupting her exclusive breastfeeding. The organization declined, citing a lack of provision in the policy. As a result, she had to forgo the trip.

Policies are not permanent; they can be reviewed and adapted. Leaders in organizations have a significant role in making the workplace more conducive for women. While the benefits of such changes are clear and direct for women, for men, a breastfeeding room or policy change in the workplace may not directly benefit them individually, but a nationwide change will benefit their mothers, sisters, friends, wives, and babies.

The conversation in the WhatsApp group evolved into a Sunday Mail article titled ‘Rethinking Breastfeeding in Zimbabwe.’ Excerpt below: