Save the Children: Power of the First Hour

Meet baby Watta…

Watta is just 1 day old in this photo. Her mother, Comfort, walked for 7 hours to use the Maternal Waiting Room at Peter Town Clinic before her birth. Save the Children support these waiting rooms in rural communities in Liberia, to ensure that expectant mothers have access to the care they need for a safe delivery. With one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, it is essential that Liberia has these facilities, to ensure that more mothers are able to give birth in clinics with access to trained health workers and medicine.

Comfort, Watta’s mother, is just 17 years old. She lives in Goe, which is completely inaccessible by road. The Peter Town Clinic, although a 7 hour walk away, meant that she was able to attend ante-natal clinic throughout her pregnancy. During these visits and her waiting period before birth, Comfort received health talks on the importance of breast feeding, immunisation, family planning and newborn care.

As a result of this work, which is supported by Save the Children, Comfort plans to breastfeed her daughter Watta for up to two years, and is already off to a good start. The first feed, in the first hour, is the most important.

Happily, Watta has now been able to have the best start possible, thanks to the clinic & the work done by Save the Children to raise community awareness campaigns, which educate people about important issues such as the facilities available to them, and maternal and new born mortality reduction.

Help Save the Children with their Power of the First Hour campaign

Please watch this video to find out what happened when Mylenne Klass visited Manila in the Philippines to find out how breastfeeding is saving lives:

If you want to help support the Power of the First Hour campaign, please consider:

• Signing the petition to urge Nestlé and Danone to put a stop to any conduct that undermines breastfeeding.
• Donating to help support new mums breastfeed their children.

Thanks for reading!