MIRI: A nursing room for mothers was launched yesterday at Miri Airport. The facility, which provides a conducive and comfortable environment for mothers to nurse their children, is the first of its kind in Miri and second in Sarawak. The first such nursing room in Kuching was launched in 2015.
The room, known as “Baby Care Room”, was launched by Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development, Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah.
“Thanks to the combined collaboration between Malaysia Airport Berhad Sdn Bhd (MAB) and the Miri Health Department for making this a reality,” she said during the launching. Fatimah hoped such efforts would encourage mothers to breastfeed their children in a comfortable environment.
The “Baby Care Room” is located on the first floor of the Miri Airport next to the departure hall. Fatimah also proposed that a signboard be put up at the entrance or a nearby area to let people know about the location of the room.
The Minister hopes more agencies (private or government) could follow the move made by MAB Miri and Miri Health Department to encourage more mothers to breastfeed their children. “Breast milk contains a combination of vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and antibodies tailored to meet an infant’s changing nutritional needs.
“It is crucial for mothers to have a strong support system from the society in order to breastfeed their child. “These support system includes their husbands, families, workplaces and so on,” she said. According to Fat imah, i n Sarawak, the percentage of mothers who breastfed exclusively for the first six months increased from amere 10.1 per cent in 2011 to 37.5 per cent in 2017.
This year, the rate is 42.4 per cent. Also present during the launching ceremony of the Baby Care Room here yesterday were an officer from the Miri Health Department , Dr Veronica Lugah and Miri Airport Berhad Manager, Zainal Abidin Harun.
