Its president, Mrs. Funmilayo Arowoogun, made the call during an advocacy visit to the Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria in Lagos.
She lamented that the workplace was fast becoming unfriendly to nursing mothers, with just a few organisations providing facilities and policies that assist them in nurturing their kids and effectively pursuing their careers.
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Arowoogun said the government should ensure that organisations that support safer working environments for nursing mothers get tax waivers.
Her words: “NNEW is working with Alive & Thrive, a donor agency, on a project centred on baby-friendly workplace for nursing mothers, and we know that IoD Nigeria is a very strategic organisation with members comprising directors of organisations in Nigeria, where a lot of women work. We believe that if we are able to work with IoD and collaborate with their members, they will be able to realise the benefits of making the workplace friendly for nursing mothers.”
The NNEW boss said through the partnership, the two bodies would move to influence policies towards making the workplace baby-friendly.
Responding, Director General/Chief Executive Officer of IoD Nigeria, Bamidele Alimi, pledged support for the project, adding that in other climes, leaders have gone beyond trying to convince people to provide a work-friendly environment for mothers.
He continued: “We are willing to provide access to our members in a ‘way and place’ where they will be able to listen to NNEW on this advocacy. We need to really work out the system on how to go about it because most of the chief executives of firms can be very busy. We need to encourage firms to follow global best practices, because there is no longer Nigeria’s way of doing things.”
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