CRC/C/15/Add.259 page 14 (c) Implement measures to guarantee access to quality prenatal and post-natal health services and facilities, including training programmes for midwives and traditional birth attendants, by paying particular attention to the rural areas of the country; (d) Take all necessary measures to lower infant, under-five and maternal mortality rates; (e) Strengthen existing efforts to immunize as many children and mothers as possible by effectively implementing immunization programmes; (f) Encourage exclusive breastfeeding for six months after birth with modifications for an appropriate infant diet thereafter and take measures to improve the nutritional status of children through education and promotion of healthy feeding practices; (g) Make use - in the negotiations of free trade agreements - of all the flexibilities reaffirmed by the Declaration on the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and Public Health adopted at the Fourth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Doha and the mechanisms at its disposal to ensure access to affordable medicines in particular for the poor and most vulnerable children and their parents; (h) Continue to cooperate and seek technical assistance in this matter with, inter alia, WHO, UNICEF and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Environmental health 60. The Committee is concerned, despite the legislative and other measures taken by the State party, about environmental problems, such as air and water pollution and environmental degradation which have serious consequences for children’s health and development. As regards access to safe drinking water and sanitation, the Committee is concerned about the regional disparities. Furthermore, poor knowledge of hygienic practices both among children and their parents give cause for concern. 61. The Committee recommends that the State party: (a) Continue to strengthen its efforts to reduce pollution and environmental degradation by strengthening the implementation of domestic environmental laws, including Ecological Solid Waste Management Act (Republic Act No. 9003) and the Clean Air Act (Republic Act No. 8749); (b) Increase children’s knowledge of environmental health issues by introducing environmental health education programmes in schools; (c) Take effective measures to improve access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities, particularly in the remote areas of the country, as well as raise awareness on hygiene among children and their parents.