Health Minister Dr. Lackram Bodoe says a human milk bank will soon be established in Trinidad and Tobago to provide vulnerable newborns with access to life-saving donor milk.
He made the announcement while speaking at the official World Breastfeeding Week 2025 celebration, where 25 healthcare professionals were also certified as Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative trainers – a milestone for the region.
World Breastfeeding Week 2025 is being celebrated under the theme “Prioritise Breastfeeding, Create Sustainable Support Systems,” and Minister Bodoe said the government is taking steps to improve neonatal health outcomes.
“So, we are, therefore, taking decisive steps with the support of the Federated Republic of Brazil and technical guidance from PAHO-WHO to establish a human milk bank right here in Trinidad and Tobago. So, once completed, this facility will ensure that every infant in need has access to life-saving human milk, regardless of circumstance.”
Minister Bodoe said there are currently over 700 milk banks worldwide, and Trinidad and Tobago’s facility will position the nation as a leader in the Caribbean, supporting other countries seeking to set up similar services.
He also stressed the long-term benefits of breastfeeding, not just for newborns, but also for preventing chronic illnesses in adulthood.
“Furthermore, according to a recent study, there is evidence that breastfeeding has protective roles against obesity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, and type 2 diabetes mellitus during adulthood. This is a further reason, and a very important reason, Minister, why we should encourage breastfeeding because, as we know, we have a scourge of NCDs in this country: diabetes, hypertension, and so on, and obesity.”
Minister Bodoe added that the new milk bank is part of the Ministry’s broader vision to meet the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Country representative for PAHO/WHO, Dr. Gabriel Vivas Francesconi, shared that the organisation will also be providing support to Trinidad and Tobago to implement Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC), a method of caring for premature or low birth weight infants, emphasising skin-to-skin contact between the baby and parent, typically the mother, along with exclusive breastfeeding.
“PAHO will today be supporting the Ministry of Health and, in particular, the National Breastfeeding Unit by providing kangaroo wraps that will be given to mothers of premature and sick neonates to encourage them to move towards the early initiation of kangaroo mother care where indicated.”
This year’s celebration also saw the presentation of certification to 25 healthcare professionals, the first cohort in the Caribbean to be trained and certified as Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative trainers.