ArticleBMC public health2026
Amplifying enablers, challenges and gaps in the implementation of Baby-Friendly Community Initiative (BFCI) at subnational level in Kenya: a cross-sectional qualitative study.
Article in BMC public health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOptimal maternal infant and young child nutrition is a cornerstone of child survival and development. Kenya adapted the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), to strengthen maternal, infant, and young child nutrition through community level interventions, multisectoral engagement, and integration within the Community Health Strategy and Primary Health Care. Despite strong policy support, scale-up and sustainability remain uneven. This study examined enablers, barriers, and gaps influencing the implementation of Baby Friendly Community Initiative (BFCI) in Kenya.
methodsA qualitative, cross-sectional study was conducted between February 3 and 21, 2025, as part of a larger study of Baby Friendly Community Initiative. Forty-one key informant interviews and 37 focus group discussions were conducted with policymakers, development and implementing partners, county and sub-county health teams, community health actors, and beneficiaries. Nine counties were purposively selected to capture diverse geographic and health system contexts. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically using predefined matrices.
resultsBaby Friendly Community Initiative implementation was supported by policy integration and a strong community health strategy platform. Enablers included availability of guiding documents and integration into strategic frameworks, enhanced capacity through donor supported training, and community structures such as mother to mother and community mother support groups. However, barriers included inadequate domestic funding, delayed stipends for community health promoters, limited multisectoral integration, and a cumbersome manual reporting system. Context specific challenges, including food insecurity, gender dynamics, nomadic lifestyles, and geographic inaccessibility in arid and semi-arid lands, further constrained program reach and sustainability.
conclusionBFCI has achieved policy alignment and community acceptance but faces systemic and contextual barriers that threaten long term sustainability and impact. Strengthened domestic financing, integration of digital reporting systems, simplified training, and enhanced multisectoral approaches to address food insecurity and gender inequities are essential for scaling and sustaining the initiative.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.