It is dark and cool inside the room. Students are seated on the floor, their backs pressed against an old wooden bed frame, the bare cement wall, or large sacks of grain. At the teacher’s command, a man rises from the floor and approaches the chalkboard. He is instructed to complete the two math problems displayed: 6,202 divided by 7; 2,313 multiplied by 3. He navigates the long division with ease; the multiplication even quicker. He takes his seat against a bag of grain as his classmates clap in unison.

Exclusive breastfeeding — when an infant receives only breast milk without any additional food or drink for the first six months — is the single most effective intervention to reduce child mortality. Despite this, only 37 percent of children in low- and middle-income countries are exclusively breastfed.