Early Childhood Development
The first years of a child’s life set the stage for all future growth.
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Challenges
In the earliest years of life, especially from pregnancy to age three, babies need nutrition, protection and stimulation for healthy brain development.
Recent advances in neuroscience provide new evidence about a baby’s brain development during this time. As a result, we know that in their earliest years, babies’ brains form new connections at an astounding rate – according to Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child more than 1 million every single second – a pace never repeated again.
Solution
All Gulf States have identified early childhood development (ECD) as a priority in their national development plans and as an area of strategic engagement with UNICEF.
The overall objective of UNICEF Gulf Area Office ECD result area is to translate this political commitment into direct results for children and their families during the early years by ensuring that all children are guaranteed access to an integrated package of multisectoral services and a protective, safe and nurturing family environment. The focus is on the period from pregnancy to age 3 – including the critical first 1,000 days of life.
To support the Gulf States to achieve this key result, UNICEF and other relevant partners facilitate the provision of technical assistance and access to high-level experts and models of international good practices that are appropriate for the Gulf. It also leverages its technical strength in programme implementation to promote core ECD strategies.
In collaboration with designated counterparts, UNICEF advocates at national and decentralized levels for adequate fiscal resources to be allocated for ECD. To achieve change at the family level, UNICEF supports government efforts to strengthen the knowledge and skills on ECD among service providers, parents and other caregivers, with a specific focus on positive parenting, responsive care and early learning.
Most Gulf States have identified children with disabilities as a major priority within their ECD programmes. The programme of cooperation focuses on strengthening institutional capacity on the early identification of children with disabilities through technical support and sharing of programme guidance and tools.
UNICEF and partners support Governments to further develop national policies, and technical capacities and strengthen multisectoral responses. In addition, UNICEF works closely with health and nutrition, child protection and social welfare institutions and organizations on nurturing care and positive parenting, utilizing internationally recognized good practice. The private sector will also be sought out as a key public-private partner in ECD. UNICEF supports the ministries of education in strengthening early care and learning in kindergartens.
In addition, a number of Governments have requested support from UNICEF to strengthen data on ECD to fill the gaps, build the evidence base and ensure resources are optimized to improve the quality and impact of ECD interventions, with a specific focus on the most vulnerable and children with disabilities.
