Early childhood

Yet large proportions of the world's children are denied access to the benefits of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), which in turn limits the development potential of countries and regions.

Cost efficient

In the absence of a supportive family research shows how early
interventions can improve both cognitive, socioemotional abilities and the
health for disadvantaged children. Early interventions promote schooling,
reduce crime, foster workforce productivity and reduce teenage pregnance.

To invest in Early Childhood Care and Education is thus both
cost-efficient and have high rates of return.

World Conference on ECCE

In order to reach education for all (EFA) it is crucial to improve Early
Childhood Care and Education. From the 27th to the 29th of September 2010 the
first World Conference on eary Childhood and Education will be arranged in
Moscow. The conference focuses on the importance of starting early:

• ECCE is a right, recognized in the Convention on the Rights of the Child ratified by 149 countries.
• ECCE is the bedrock of EFA and the first step in meeting all the other EFA goals.
• ECCE can improve the well-being of young children, especially in the developing world, where a child has a four in ten chance of living in extreme poverty and 10.5 million children a year under five die from preventable diseases. 
• ECCE contributes to the Millennium Development Goal of reducing poverty, as well as to the education, health and other international goals and instruments.
• ECCE has a beneficial effect on later schooling and leads to higher school enrolment, particularly for girls.
• ECCE is cost-effective in that it a preventive measure supporting children early on rather than compensating their disadvantage when older.
• ECCE in the form of reliable child care provides essential support for working parents, particularly mothers.
• ECCE investment yields high economic returns, offsetting disadvantage and inequality, especially for children from poor families. It benefits taxpayers and enhances economic vitality.
• ECCE has positive effects on female labour force participation and older siblings’ schooling.
• ECCE levels the playing field by reducing inequalities between rich and poor and is thus a key component to breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty.