Manami Kikuchi: To the Whole Country! Baby Cafeterias!

2024/02/16

Currently, I operate a midwifery clinic in Samukawa Town, Kanagawa Prefecture. When I opened it, I conducted a survey of households with infants in the area to understand their needs. I received responses from 825 households. Through this, I realized that many mothers feel a sense of isolation in childcare, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are now in an era where childcare information flies around on social media, and breastfeeding and excretion are managed via apps. We have reached a point where AI can interpret a baby's cry and sense their needs. However, in reality, there is no end to parents who become anxious because of such information and numbers, and are pushed to the brink of postpartum depression without understanding the essence of childcare. Postpartum depression affects one in ten parents, regardless of gender. This is the current situation in Japan. Furthermore, many households are economically distressed and isolated.

As my mission as a midwife, to create an environment for raising children in the community without letting childcare become isolated, I started "Baby Cafeteria," a baby version of a children's cafeteria, as a pioneer in the country.

Baby Cafeteria is a place for parents and children for three hours during the day; it costs 400 yen for adults, while baby food, milk, and diapers are free. With the cooperation of local volunteers, parents can receive childcare monitoring and consultations, and enjoy a warm meal. Not having physiological needs met, such as sleeping and eating, is also a factor in postpartum depression. The goal is not only to support the baby but also to energize the parents and give them vitality for childcare.

It spread through word of mouth, and reservations fill up quickly, with many people on the waiting list. Opportunities to be featured in the media have increased, support in the form of goods and donations has expanded, and the number of places across the country implementing similar initiatives is growing.

I myself was born into a poor household and entered society once after graduating from junior high school. However, I felt strongly that qualifications and learning opportunities were necessary to break the cycle of poverty, so I took the initiative and obtained a high school equivalency certificate. It was Keio University that gave me the chance to study at a university, and I was able to graduate successfully with a scholarship from within Keio. During my time as a student, while studying at the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care, I also took lectures at the Faculty of Policy Management at the same SFC, and encountering social entrepreneurship there is undoubtedly my current driving force.

With pride as a Keio University alumni, I want to increase the number of people who support our efforts and expand Baby Cafeterias nationwide.