President Bachelet: “Chile will be a country where every child is born and grows up with all the opportunities to develop”

Accompanied by the Health Minister, Carmen Castillo and the Social Development Minister, Fernanda Villegas, the President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, visited the Hospital El Carmen Dr. Luis Valentín Ferrada in the Maipú district of Santiago this morning to present the redesigned Newborn Support Program baby boxes. The baby boxes are one of the main components of the “Chile Crece Contigo” (Chile Grows with You) Infancy Protection System, which supports and safeguards every child and their families through a personalized child development check-up program from early pregnancy until the child enters preschool education.

Every baby born in a public hospital is eligible for a Newborn Support Program baby box which consists of three packs: the mother and baby pack; the essentials and play pack; and the crib pack. The aim of the baby box is to ensure that every baby is well looked after and safe. The program encourages mothers to breastfeed exclusively for the first six months and highlights the importance of forming strong bonds between newborns and parents or carers. The program also provides information about how to look after your baby.

The Newborn Support Program was launched in 2009 during President Bachelet’s first administration and has benefitted 800,000 families throughout Chile. In 2015 a total of $13.5 billion pesos (US$22 million) will be spent on the program.

President Bachelet began her speech by emphasizing that “Things must always get better. So we are delighted to announce important improvements and addition to the baby boxes that will be given out from April this year, exactly as I promised last year on the 5th anniversary of the Newborn Support Program. Today we are fulfilling that promise; because what we promise, we deliver.”

The baby box consists of three separate packs: the crib pack, the mother and baby pack and the essentials and play pack. The crib pack contains a flat pack crib, mattress, sheets, duvet and blanket. In the new version the crib is larger and comes with a mattress protector. The mother and baby pack contains a breastfeeding cushion, a baby carrier – now with longer straps, instructions on how to use the cushion and baby carrier, an information booklet, three cotton diapers, a bath towel, a changing bag, and clothing aged 3-6 months (1 sleepsuit, 1 pair of footed leggings, 1 long sleeved bodysuit, 1 fleecy long sleeved romper suit, 1 hat and 1 pair of socks.) The essentials and play pack contains hypoallergenic liquid soap, a plastic changing mat – now larger, diaper rash cream, massage oil and an interlocking soft foam play mat.

The new baby boxes come with an educational DVD with advice for parents on topics such as breastfeeding, respectful childrearing and how to use the items in the box itself. The boxes also feature stimulating toys including a musical mobile for the crib to stimulate baby’s visual and motor skills; a “My First Book” to encourage baby’s visual, tactile and motor development and a book with100 illustrated stories to support early familiarization with books and encourage parents to read to their children every day.

“These elements are not only a great support for families, they directly support the baby’s development. How? By stimulating their senses and skills, by promoting breastfeeding, by educating families on how to support the development of this new arrival so that from the very start, every child has all the opportunities to develop healthily and happily”, the President explained.

President Bachelet highlighted that with this program the Government is also “ensuring more equal opportunities from birth. We want to support families that are raising children, with opportunities for stimulation and learning, from nursery education onwards. And this is why we are doing everything we can to ensure that every child gets a high quality education from the very start.”

She ended her speech by reiterating: “The promise we are making to every child born in Chile today: is that tomorrow, this will be a country where there is no place for inequality, where every child is born and grows with all the opportunities to develop. This is why, in spite of the difficulties, we are fast-tracking the reforms that will allow us to live in a fairer, more supportive and more cohesive country; the kind of country we want our children to live in.”