The Ministry of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation, in partnership with UNICEF, promotes the recently approved Law on Early Childhood Education

Prishtina, 19 September 2023 – Today, the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), in collaboration with UNICEF Kosovo, hosted an event for the presentation of the recently approved Law on Early Childhood Education.

This Law aims to promote the comprehensive development of young children by providing for the first time the necessary regulatory framework to improve the quality and coverage of care and education services for children ages zero-6.

The Law also aims to support continuous early childhood education within families, strengthen coordination between institutions, and improve the quality of early childhood education and care with the introduction of a new curriculum, training of service providers, and strengthened systems for inspection and licensing.

 The event gathered policymakers, education professionals, and representatives from ministries, municipalities, embassies, and local and international organizations working in the field of education to raise awareness of the new law and discuss the importance of early childhood education in Kosovo.

“As a Minister, as a teacher and as a mother, I am proud of the achievements in this direction - knowing well all the stages of the child's development, at home, in society, and at school. This big institutional step deserves to be properly marked with an event like this today, together with all the contributors,” said Mrs. Arberie Nagavci, Minister of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation.

This approval of the Law on Early Childhood Education (ECE) follows the High-Level Early Childhood Development (ECD) event held in 2022, under the auspices of the President of Kosovo, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, which produced a five-point Call to Action to ensure transformational improvements in outcomes for young children and their families.

“Kosovo has recognized the importance of investing in human capital, and particularly in health, education, and social services in the early childhood period” said Mrs. Nona Zicherman, the Head of UNICEF in Kosovo. “Now it is time to accelerate, and this new law provides an excellent road map to rapidly expand access to ECE services in Kosovo from the current 38% to the 55% target of the Kosovo Education Strategic Plan.”

UNICEF has been supporting MESTI in developing the revised Law on Early Childhood Education since 2019 and will continue providing technical and financial support to ensure full implementation of this reform. UNICEF calls on all partners to support access to quality inclusive early childhood education and care services for all children in Kosovo.