WORLD Policy Analysis Center

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Are working mothers guaranteed paid options to facilitate exclusive breastfeeding for at least 6 months?

This map shows whether mothers are guaranteed leave and/or breaks that support breastfeeding an infant for at least the 6 months recommended by the World Health Organization.

Paid leave for mothers includes both paid maternity leave, which is leave reserved for mothers of infants, and paid parental leave, which is leave for either parent of an infant, that can be taken by women.

No, none means that women are not entitled to at least six months of paid maternal leave or paid breastfeeding breaks at work. Women may be entitled to shorter periods of paid maternal leave or paid breastfeeding breaks, but these are too short to support the WHO recommendation of at least 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding.

Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks means that women are either guaranteed at least 6 months of paid maternal leave or paid breastfeeding breaks for at least six months (but not both options).

Both means that women are guaranteed paid maternal leave for at least 6 months and paid breastfeeding breaks for at least 6 months. This allows women who choose to return to work before the duration of their maternal leave entitlement expires to continue breastfeeding their infant.

Countries

Algeria - No, none

Antigua and Barbuda - No, none

Australia - No, none

Bahamas - No, none

Bangladesh - No, none

Barbados - No, none

Belize - No, none

Bhutan - No, none

Brunei - No, none

Dominica - No, none

Eritrea - No, none

Ethiopia - No, none

Fiji - No, none

Grenada - No, none

Guyana - No, none

Jamaica - No, none

Kenya - No, none

Lebanon - No, none

Malaysia - No, none

Malta - No, none

Marshall Islands - No, none

Micronesia, Federated States of - No, none

Myanmar - No, none

Namibia - No, none

Nauru - No, none

Nepal - No, none

Oman - No, none

Pakistan - No, none

Palau - No, none

Seychelles - No, none

Sierra Leone - No, none

Singapore - No, none

South Africa - No, none

St. Kitts and Nevis - No, none

St. Lucia - No, none

St. Vincent and the Grenadines - No, none

Suriname - No, none

Eswatini - No, none

Thailand - No, none

Tonga - No, none

Trinidad and Tobago - No, none

Uganda - No, none

United States of America - No, none

Yemen - No, none

Afghanistan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Andorra - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Angola - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Argentina - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Bahrain - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Benin - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Bolivia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Botswana - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Brazil - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Burkina Faso - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Cambodia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Cameroon - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Canada - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Cabo Verde - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Central African Republic - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Chad - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

China - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Colombia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Comoros - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Democratic Republic of the Congo - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Republic of the Congo - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Costa Rica - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Cote d'Ivoire - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Cyprus - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Denmark - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Dominican Republic - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Ecuador - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Egypt - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

El Salvador - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Equatorial Guinea - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Finland - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Gabon - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

The Gambia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Ghana - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Greenland - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Guatemala - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Guinea - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Guinea-Bissau - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Haiti - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Honduras - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Iceland - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Indonesia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Iraq - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Israel - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Japan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Jordan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Kazakhstan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Kiribati - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Democratic People's Republic of Korea - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Kuwait - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Kyrgyzstan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Laos - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Lesotho - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Liberia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Libya - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Liechtenstein - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Madagascar - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Malawi - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Maldives - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mali - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mauritania - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mauritius - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mexico - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Monaco - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mongolia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Morocco - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Mozambique - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

The Netherlands - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

New Zealand - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Nicaragua - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Niger - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Nigeria - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Panama - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Papua New Guinea - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Paraguay - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Peru - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

The Philippines - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Qatar - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Rwanda - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Samoa - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Sao Tome and Principe - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Saudi Arabia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Senegal - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Solomon Islands - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Somalia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

South Sudan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Spain - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Sri Lanka - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Sudan - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Switzerland - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Syria - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Tanzania - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Timor-Leste - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Togo - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Tunisia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Türkiye - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Tuvalu - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

United Arab Emirates - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

United Kingdom - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Uruguay - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Vanuatu - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Zambia - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Zimbabwe - Either maternal leave or breastfeeding breaks

Albania - Both

Armenia - Both

Austria - Both

Azerbaijan - Both

Belarus - Both

Belgium - Both

Bosnia and Herzegovina - Both

Bulgaria - Both

Chile - Both

Croatia - Both

Cuba - Both

Czech Republic - Both

Djibouti - Both

Estonia - Both

France - Both

Georgia - Both

Germany - Both

Greece - Both

Hungary - Both

India - Both

Iran - Both

Ireland - Both

Italy - Both

Republic of Korea - Both

Latvia - Both

Lithuania - Both

Luxembourg - Both

North Macedonia - Both

Moldova - Both

Montenegro - Both

Norway - Both

Poland - Both

Portugal - Both

Romania - Both

Russian Federation - Both

San Marino - Both

Serbia - Both

Slovakia - Both

Slovenia - Both

Sweden - Both

Tajikistan - Both

Turkmenistan - Both

Ukraine - Both

Uzbekistan - Both

Venezuela - Both

Vietnam - Both