Early childhood interventions can accelerate social progress
Millions of people were this month captivated by the live-broadcasted efforts to rescue five-year-old Moroccan child Rayan Awram after he fell into a 32-meter well. This heart-rending incident has affected us deeply, for no one wanted to witness a child go through such an adverse experience. It also sparked questions about the harsh realities, vulnerabilities and limitations that millions of children face each day as they struggle to access basic services pertaining to their education or healthcare, eat nutritious foods, thrive amid positive social connections, enjoy playtime, and be protected within their own communities.
A global discourse is needed to raise urgent questions regarding the quality and universality of early childhood systems to ensure that children can thrive and become happy, productive adults. An abundance of evidence points to the multiple spillover effects of investments in early childhood in boosting brain development, enhancing mental and physical well-being, improving academic attainment, increasing social and community cohesion, and increasing employability and income levels. This positive trajectory highlights the causal linkages of various policy levers, emphasizing the importance of these interdependent short and long-term investments.
Considering the social nature of such policy interventions, it would be judicious for governments to partner with private enterprises, nongovernmental organizations and citizens to initiate pockets of active, philanthropic communities that ensure the flawless delivery of various solutions. On the one hand, private enterprises can channel their annual corporate social responsibility budgets to fund critically important early childhood programs. On the other hand, NGOs can offer comprehensive understanding of local community needs and implementation support. Citizens are also urged to increase their sense of responsibility toward the plight of their communities by volunteering their time and expertise in supporting early childhood programs.
The Educate Your Child program that has been rolled out in a number of Latin American countries provides an excellent example of garnering community support to promote important concepts related to early childhood development among families. In this case study, specialist teachers and health professionals trained local family doctors and facilitators on essential techniques pertaining to enhancing early childhood experiences. These facilitators then went on to impart their advice to families with young children, resulting in weekly, individual home visits and learning through games, conversations and other activities to promote child development. Families were also invited to regularly visit parks, cultural centers or sports centers with a locally trained counsellor to further solidify child development experiences.
One alarming issue facing children is malnutrition. A UNICEF report estimated that 149 million children’s growth was stunted due to undernutrition in 2020 and 45 million were wasting due to poor nutrient intake or disease. Poor diets weaken children’s immunity, increase mortality rates, make children more susceptible to diseases, and disrupt learning. Sadly, malnutrition is linked to nearly half of deaths among children under the age of five. Many communities face obstacles when it comes to securing nutritious and affordable meals for children. Partnerships must be solidified with private enterprises to source financial backing for a number of critical nutrition programs, such as school lunch programs, micronutrient supplementation, parental awareness, food vouchers, and local agricultural businesses.
At the same time, it is important to leverage local health professionals to educate parents about early childhood development and health. Since establishing early childhood centers is a costly intervention, policymakers can still capitalize on the influential role of mothers as children’s primary educators. In this vein, support groups for mothers are becoming an increasingly promising investment that paves the way for improved physical, cognitive and socio-emotional development among young children. For instance, the Mother-Child Education Program, first piloted in Turkey and later replicated in 13 countries, engages 14 to 25 mothers in weekly three-hour sessions for six months to give them the knowledge and skills required to bring up their children, covering issues such as early literacy and child health. The training is delivered by a team of social workers and teachers who also carry out home visits to support mothers in core areas, including skills to promote the cognitive development of their children, creating a positive mother-child home environment, and preparing their children for school via pre-literacy and pre-numeracy activities.
Another vital area to address is the quality of housing in which children live. Research published by Boston College and Tufts University explored the effects of poor housing conditions on child well-being among low-income families in poverty-stricken neighborhoods. The study revealed negative effects such as lower emotional well-being, aggressive behavioral problems, poor academic performance, and elevated depression and stress levels. In the same manner, children’s play areas should be located in local neighborhoods and designed to be safe and enjoyable.
The Australian nonprofit company Healthabitat strives to improve the health of disadvantaged communities, especially children, by improving the quality and safety of their housing. For three decades, it has relied on a foolproof methodology that scans homes and adjacent yards according to a standard list of 250 safety and health checkpoints, such as risks of electrocution and structural collapse, fire safety, temperature control, quality of drinking water, and reducing the negative effects of animals and insects. An independent decade-long review has demonstrated a remarkable 40 percent reduction in hospitalization rates among individuals who have received this support for their housing. Projects rely heavily on community collaboration and only take place on local community agreement and with the employment of local tradespeople. The concept has been adopted far and wide, with projects implemented in rural communities in Nepal, Bangladesh and the Navajo Nation.
It is vital that governments and local communities intensify their social investments so that children can be empowered to thrive and enjoy a quality life. By garnering support from multiple actors, these cohesive policies can lay the foundations for a lifetime of happiness and productivity.
Published in Arab News.
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