The first Education for All (EFA) goal calls for ‘expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education (ECCE), especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children’. Enrolment in ECCE programmes has tripled since 1970, but access remains limited in most developing countries. Children most exposed to malnutrition and preventable diseases are least likely to have access.

Several chapters in UNESCO’s EFA Global Monitoring Report 2007, ‘Strong foundations: early childhood care and education’, monitor progress towards the early childhood goal.

National governments pay little attention to ECCE compared to two other EFA goals: universal primary education and gender parity. Where ECCE is on the agenda it is usually geared towards ages three and up, and focused on the years before primary school entry, leaving opportunities for younger children overlooked. Public policy for children under the age of three generally focuses only on responding to cases of extreme abuse and neglect. Half the world’s countries have no formal programmes for these children.

Recognising the benefits of good-quality ECCE to children, families and society, most industrialised countries – but notably not the USA – provide children with access to at least two years of free publicly-provided ECCE before they begin primary school. Thirty countries have at least one year of compulsory pre-primary education.

However, ECCE coverage remains very low throughout the developing world. Staff typically have minimal education and pre-service training and are badly paid. There are major disparities in access within countries. Children from poorer and rural households have significantly reduced chances. Many are excluded by lack of birth or vaccination certificates.

Health and education sector plans and Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) may cover immunisation, maternal health and pre-school but are often fragmented. They fail to address the child’s well-being and development as an integrated whole. ECCE policies and programmes are generally divided between two or more state agencies. Fragmented responsibility frequently results in inefficient use of resources.

Monitoring of ECCE is problematic because:

• There is no quantitative target for EFA goal 1 (ECCE).
• It is not possible to estimate the global cost of delivering quality ECCE as the mix of public and private providers and lack of data, especially in developing countries, make it difficult to calculate current expenditure.
• Pre-primary enrolment data reported by education ministries may undercount children’s participation in programmes funded by other ministries, private groups or local communities.

In most developing countries policies and supporting legislation are no more than declarations of intent. Legislation relating to international law on children is seldom backed by enforcement. Donors do not prioritise ECCE. They generally allocate to pre-primary less than ten per cent of what they give for primary education, and over half allocate less than two per cent.

The 2007 EFA Global monitoring Report calls for:

• specific inclusion of ECCE in key government resource documents, such as national budgets, sector plans and PRSPs
• stronger partnerships between government and the private sector – a key strategy in much of the developing world
• upgrading of ECCE staff, through flexible recruitment strategies, appropriate training, quality standards and payment that encourages trained staff to stay
• improved national and international data collection and monitoring.

Source(s):
‘Worldwide Progress in Early Childhood Care and Education’, chapter six in ‘Strong Foundations: Early Childhood Care and Education. Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007’, UNESCO Publishing, October 2006 (PDF) Full document.
‘The Making of Effective Programmes’ chapter seven in ‘Strong Foundations: Early Childhood Care and Education. Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007’, UNESCO Publishing, October 2006 (PDF) Full document.
‘Fostering strong ECCE policies’ chapter eight in ‘Strong Foundations: Early Childhood Care and Education. Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007’, UNESCO Publishing, October 2006 (PDF) Full document.

Funded by: Several bilateral donors and UNESCO

id21 Research Highlight: 28 November 2006

Further Information:
Nicholas Burnett, Director
EFA Global Monitoring Report Team
UNESCO
7, place de Fontenoy
75352 Paris 07 SP, France

Tel: +33 1 45 68 21 28
Fax: +33 1 45 68 56 27
Contact the contributor: efareport@unesco.org

EFA Monitoring Report Team, UNESCO

Other related links:
'Ignoring the world’s youngest children makes no sense'

'Building policy support for early childhood care and education'

'Early childhood development programmes for the developing world'

'Feeding young minds: mental development of undernourished Jamaican children'