3rd World Breastfeeding Conference

"Breastfeeding and healthy complementary feeding: human rights to be protect for life"

November 11th to 15th, 2019 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

About the Conference

In view of increasing globalization, it is extremely important to assess the current situation of breastfeeding and healthy complementary feeding and policies to promote them. The relentless pursuit of profits by infant food manufacturers and the insufficiency of independent public funds for the management, implementation and evaluation of such policies generate conflicts of interest that threaten the human rights to breastfeeding and to adequate healthy complementary food.

This 3rd World Breastfeeding Conference (WBC), 1st World Complementary Feeding Conference (WCFC), XV National Breastfeeding Meeting (ENAM) and V National Meeting of Complementary Healthy Feeding (ENACS) was promoted by IBFAN as a huge collaborative event that involved civil society and governmental and non-governmental partners from several countries. This string of meetings was organized without conflicts of interest, without any support from the infant food industry, nor teats, pacifiers and bottles manufacturers, nor the tobacco or beverage industry, nor the arms industry or those involved in slave or child labor. Participants expressed strong commitment to democracy and the advancement of the human rights to dignified life and healthy and sustainable food.

History

The 1st World Breastfeeding Conference (WBC), organized by IBFAN International, took place in Asia, in New Delhi, India in 2012, under the motto: “Babies Need Mom-Made: Not Man-Made!” It was part of the Strategic Plan of the Global Breastfeeding Initiative for Child Survival. It initiated a regular report on infant feeding policies and practices in 51 countries, using the “World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative” (WBTi) methodology, and ended with a joint “Call to Action”.

The 2nd World Breastfeeding Conference was held in 2016 in Johannesburg, South Africa, under the motto: “Breastfeeding: Let’s Invest in Creating an Enabling Environment for Mothers and Babies”. It discussed global investment forecasts for nutrition policies aimed at mothers, infants and young children. On that occasion, the “World Breastfeeding Cost Initiative” (WBCi) was launched, an instrument for evaluating the budgets, investments and costs of infant feeding policies.

Latin America, a continent of cultural richness, ethnic diversity, profound socioeconomic inequality, a scenario of distinctive food practices and innovative policies to promote, protect and support breastfeeding and healthy complementary feeding, hosted in Brazil the 3rd World Breastfeeding Conference, 1st World Complementary Feeding Conference, XV National Meeting on Breastfeeding and V National Meeting on Healthy Complementary Feeding.

XV ENAM, V ENACS, 3rd WBC and 1st WCFC – Documentary

Special Moments

3rd World Breastfeeding Conference (3rd WBC), 1st World Complementary Feeding Conference (1st WCFC), XV Brazilian Breastfeeding Conference (XV ENAM) and V Brazilian Healthy Complementary Feeding Conference (V ENACS)

RIO DE JANEIRO DECLARATION

Call to Action

Rio de Janeiro, 15 November 2019
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

We, citizens of the whole world, call on all governments, professionals, companies and everybody to implement the right of children to be breastfed and of mothers to breastfeed. Mothers have the sovereign right over their own bodies and States have a duty to ensure that they do not face obstacles to breastfeeding nor healthy complementary feeding. Breastfeeding is one of the most important resources to face the climate crisis and social inequalities and violence. It is part of the imperative need to protect the environment and give future generations the opportunity for a better and dignified life. Breastfeeding promotes healthy growth and empathy from the beginning of life and is the only antidote against violence.

This is the conclusion of the debates of the Third World Breastfeeding Conference (3rd WBC), First World Complementary Feeding Conference (1st WCFC), XV Brazilian Breastfeeding Meeting (XV ENAM) and V Brazilian Healthy Complementary Feeding Meeting (V ENACS), held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 11 to 15 November 2019. For these events, 2400 mothers, professionals and experts from Brazil, and 60 other countries from Latin America and the rest of the world gathered to assess the progress made in the protection and promotion of breastfeeding since 1981, when the International Code was adopted.

Breastfeeding programs and incentives must be implemented to ensure that the human right to breastfeeding is respected. The consumption of ultraprocessed foods must be eliminated or limited. Breastfeeding for two years and beyond protects the environment and must be part of the ecological efforts to save the world.

There are international instruments that include this vision of breastfeeding and healthy complementary feeding, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the International Code of marketing Breastmilk Substitutes (Code), the ILO conventions, the World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi), the Innocenti Declaration and others. We must ensure that all policy setting processes are free from commercial influence.

Participants in the 3rd WBC / 15th ENAM / 5th ENACS / 1st WCFC declare their commitment to the following actions:

Continuation of policies for the protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding and healthy complementary feeding: with a coordinating committee and the necessary funding secured.
Protection of maternity at work: 6 months minimum paid maternity leave for all women.
Protection against unethical marketing of products that replace breastfeeding: implementation of the International Code and national laws.
Support for humanized childbirth by strengthening the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, human milk banks, kangaroo mother care and mother-to-mother support groups through counseling practices.
Serious emergencies compromise the health of infants; in emergencies breastfeeding should be the first resource, implementing international guidelines.

We, citizens of the world, will continue working towards achieving these goals and fighting for compliance with these instruments and we call on all governments and citizens of the world to join this fight.

Download the Declaration in three languages:

Below, check out our photo gallery taken during the three days of the event.