Da Nang City, the capital of central Vietnam, on Thursday afternoon held a launching ceremony for six breastfeeding rooms at Da Nang International Airport, making it the first airport in the country to provide private spaces for nursing mothers.

The airport’s six breastfeeding rooms, located near entrance gates and the waiting area, are soundproof and equipped with fans and comfortable seats.

Le Ngoc Anh Thy, an international board-certified lactation consultant involved in the breastfeeding room opening project, stated that the rooms were designed to ensure privacy and safety for nursing mothers.

Each room can accommodate up to four mothers.

According to a survey of 400 local and international nursing mothers, women need private, safe, and clean spaces to feed their babies or pump their milk.

“I often find it hard to access a suitable area to use a breast pump in public places such as airports and shopping malls. I sometimes breastfeed my baby in a restroom,” one nursing mother said.

Speaking at the ceremony, Do Trong Hau, deputy head of the Da Nang International Airport management board, said that the opening of breastfeeding rooms is expected to help nursing mothers feel more comfortable while feeding their babies.

Nursing mothers have the right to breastfeed their babies in public places without judgement, but they should still be provided with safe and private spots to ensure comfort, said Chris Vanloon, chairman of the Rotary Club of Da Nang.

"The opening of these breastfeeding rooms will allow nursing mothers to feed their babies comfortably and confidently, and it comes just as we begin to approach World Day of Human Milk Donation on May 19," said Paul Zambrano, acting regional director at Alive & Thrive East Asia Pacific.

Zambrano underlined that investments in and support for breastfeeding benefit not only nursing mothers and babies, but also socio-economic growth.

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