The popular saying goes, ‘when you educate a woman, you educate the world.’ Many have come to accept this saying and educating more women for inclusion in government and in private organisations have become a priority. Generally in Africa and in Nigeria, more women are joining the workforce. However not enough is being done to accommodate the various needs of a woman once she takes up the duty of a nursing mother. Bukola Ogunsina writes on why crèches should be a part of the Nigerian work environment
A crèche is a place where babies and young children are cared for during working days when the working parents of these children are not available to see to the care of their children themselves at that particular given time. In Nigeria today, not many government or private owned organisations can boast of crèches at the workplace to ease the burden on nursing mothers.
Most workplaces in the country are not nursing mom friendly and this is a worrying trend. Many opinions have pointed to the fact that a legislation should be implemented and enforced that would allow for crèches in offices for nursing mothers as this would go a long way to assist them in being more effecient at work.
It all begins with maternity leave
In Nigeria, maternity leave for nursing mothers who are civil servants is four months, to which they are entitled after confirmation, which is said to be a period of two years of service, while maternity leave for those working with private companies vary; with some ranging from three months to less or more, while their entitlement to it varies from organisation to organisation.
Health practitioners highly recommend that nursing mothers breastfeed babies exclusively for six months, since breast milk is very vital in the first months for the baby’s development, but mothers struggle to cope with this at work in an environment where offices see the idea of specially made lactation rooms for nursing mothers as a burden on the organisation where they work, this is not to mention the vital roles of crèches in working environment.
In Nigeria, when a nursing mother resumes work after maternity leave, is robbed of the satisfying experience of nurturing her baby properly, pointing out the fact that the stipulated maternity leave period may be inadequate for several nursing mothers.
According to the Labour Act, Chapter 198, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990, Part III, under the Special Classes of Worker and Miscellaneous Special Provisions, in the Employment of women, (d) states that; ‘shall in any case, if she is nursing her child, be allowed half an hour twice a day during her working hours for that purpose.’
If the baby is in a crèche far away from the mother’s working place, or is kept at home, a distance from work with a nanny or relative, how will this law be successfully implemented?
In Kenya, the law requires that women be entitled to three months leave with full benefits, while in South Africa women are entitled to four months paid maternity leave, which is not so far fetched from what obtains in Nigeria. In some circumstances, some nursing mothers in Nigeria take their annual leave period together with their maternity leave to give them more time with their babies
In France, where the Government financially supports parents with childcare giving allowances and so on, according to the European Union, European Platform for Investing in Children website, women in France on maternity leave obtain their full salary for 16 weeks. It can also be 26 weeks if it is their third child and up to 34 weeks for multiple births. It also pointed out that fathers are entitled to 11 consecutive days of paid paternity leave.
The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola has been celebrated for his approval of extending maternity leave to six months for women working in public service in the state. These women would also, during this period, be paid in full. This would apply only to the first two babies delivered, afterwards maternity leave would be cut short to three months at birth of the third baby.
For women working in Nigeria, whether in public or private sector, there is still a call for these laws to be reviewed.
But while women still attempt to make the seemingly inadequate maternity leave work, many of them are not enjoying the privilege of a crèche in their workplace, making some analysts in this field to bring up the idea that paternity leave, to an extent, could help mothers cope better with nursing their babies. The idea of paternity leave in Nigeria has not been fully recognised as men are not officially entitled to it. Most men often take permission from their employers for a short amount of time to be with their wives when they put to bed.
Again, the Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola surprised many, when, alongside the six months maternity policy for women, gave 10 days as paternity leave to men for the birth of their first two babies. Some private organisations have also bought into the idea of paternity leave, giving a few days off to their male staff who become fathers.
While the idea of a paternity leave may sound like a foreign concept in Nigeria, several other countries grant this policy to their male staff without batting an eye lid. According to a media report, Czech Republic offers up to four years leave for both paternity and maternity which is called parental leave with one of the parents getting a stipend of about 600 to 400 euros per month. In Mongolia, media reports say that mothers and single fathers are entitled to paid leave until the child is three years old.
In Africa generally, not many countries give the paternity leave, but some countries like South Africa gives just two days paternity leave, while Cameroon gives ten days, and Kenya gives 14 .
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