Breastfeeding-Friendly Policies And Programs In Selected Public Universities In Ghana

Abstract Background The United Nations through its Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 5 has championed Women empowerment for exclusive breastfeeding through various action plans and expected the concept to be decentralized through locally mandatory implementation of various institutional policies and programs in member Countries. Using Kabeer’s empowerment concept, the authors in this paper assessed the availability and implementation of breastfeeding policies and programs in selected public universities in Ghana. Methods The study design was an integration of descriptive, exploratory, and case study using an unstructured interview guide developed by the authors for qualitative data collection. Thematic analysis of data on breastfeeding experiences was done yielding three main categories (breastfeeding policy and programs, support, and views on breastfeeding) emerged during data analysis. The in-depth interviews of respondents lasted 60 minutes. The University of Cape-Coast Ethics Review Board gave ethical approval for the study. Results Although Ghana has ascribed to various international conventions on childcare and developed policies enshrined in its labour law to support breastfeeding, none of the universities in this study has a formal breastfeeding/childcare policy/program and there are no future policy plans for on-campus facilities to enhance breastfeeding. Financial cost emerged as a major challenge hindering the universities from implementing a policy/program in this regard, hence nursing mothers continue to make personal but challenging arrangements for breastfeeding on university campuses. Conclusions The finding that formal breastfeeding-friendly policy/program was unavailable in the various universities in Ghana reflects negative implications for childcare, hence achieving the Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 5 in Ghana. The authors recommend formal breastfeeding-friendly policies/programs as a criterion for accreditation of universities in Ghana to enhance childcare.