No father in the world spends more time alone with his children as do those of the Aka pygmies.

Holders of the title of “best fathers in the world” after a recent study, the men of the Aka pygmy tribe, who live in the border forests of Congo Brazzaville and the Central African Republic, devote the most time to active fatherhood.

They usually offer their nipple to their crying babies just to soothe them when their mother is not home. Professor Barry Hewlett, an American anthropologist, was the first to discover male breastfeeding among the Aka Pygmies, a practice which is frowned upon in most regions.

But for the population of around 20,000 men, who go around topless most of their lives, allowing their baby to suckle on their nipple is not a problem because it is one of the many ways to be in close contact with her child.

The Aka Pygmies identify themselves as a “forest people” because of the fundamental importance of the forest to their culture, livelihoods and history.

Occupying 11 unique ecological zones in the western Congo Basin, the Aka, who speak a distinct language, as well as the 15 languages spoken by the Bantu peoples with whom they are affiliated, are closely related to the Baka people of Cameroon, northern Congo, Gabon and southwestern Central African Republic.

The Aka are nomadic hunter-gatherers. Their diet includes 20 species of insects, 28 species of game, 63 plants, as well as mushrooms, roots, nuts, honey and fruits. They barter honey and bushmeat with the neighboring Ngandu tribe for cassava, plantain, yam, taro, corn, cucumber, squash, okra, papaya, mango, pineapple, palm oil and rice.

Unlike many communities, their parenting system has since proven to be unique, as the fathers of this tribe have strong interactions with their children.

According to data collected by Hewlett, more than two decades ago, Aka fathers, on average, spent 47% of their time with their children, more than fathers of any other cultural group on the planet.

In most households today, fathers struggle to balance the time they have for work, home and children, but this is not the case for the Aka pygmies where men always find time to be with their children.

In fact, it is fathers who comfort babies when they wake up at night, and they would not hesitate to take them with them when they go to drink palm wine or attend a social function.

What is also interesting about the Aka pygmies is the fact that there is no difference between father and mother as both parents equally share household chores and childcare responsibilities. In fact, activities like hunting are not limited to men, as women hunt, sometimes even better than men.

Photo credit: facetofaceafrica

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