Wife of Jigawa gov seeks 6 months maternity leave for nursing mothers

Wife of Jigawa State Governor, Hajiya Hadiza Umar Namadi has appealed to the state government to extend maternity leave for civil servants from three to six months.

She made the appeal while speaking at Policy Dialogue on the extension of paid maternity leave for nursing mothers, in Dutse.

She said that the six months leave would give nursing mothers enough time to practice exclusive breastfeeding.

The governor’s wife, who was represented by her Special Assistant, Hajiya Hadiza Ahmed said exclusive breastfeeding from first day to six months for every child is the best prevention of all children diseases.

Chairman, Jigawa State Civil Society Scaling-up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), Comrade Shuaibu Musa Kafingana, emphasised the importance of domesticating the law and extension of the maternity leave.

He said the development will give nursing mothers the opportunity to stay at home for the complete six months needed to exclusively breastfeed their babies.