The Potential of the Baby-Friendly Community Initiative to Improve Early Child Development Outcomes and the Feasibility of Integrating Care for Child Development into the Package

Abstract

The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) model, was developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to globally promote optimum breastfeeding in maternity wards in line with the International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes. However, in developing countries, where many deliveries do not occur in health facilities, the effectiveness of the BFHI may be limited. To address this gap in the developing countries, the Baby Friendly Community Initiative (BFCI) was developed to expand on the tenth step of the BFHI which focusses on support for breastfeeding mothers after they leave hospital, at the community level to promote optimal infant and young child feeding (IYCF).