Despite policies on early childhood development, implementation remains below desired level: Experts

Despite policies and various government initiatives on early childhood development (ECD) in Bangladesh, implementation remains below the desired level, experts said at a seminar today (2 September).

The seminar titled "Celebrating Whole Child Development in Bangladesh: The Way Forward" was held in Chattogram by the ECD Network, with support from the Brac Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) and the Centre for Organisation Development and Communication (CODEC).

At the event, speakers said early childhood development should be made a permanent part of the country's health, education and social protection systems. 

This, they said, will require dedicated funding, adequate staffing, regular monitoring and clear accountability mechanisms.

Farah Muneer, coordinator and senior researcher at BIGD, said early childhood development programmes should not be limited to the duration of individual projects but should be permanently integrated into the government system.

"Early childhood development should not be viewed simply in terms of nutrition, medicine or health advice," she said.

Farah further said training frontline workers alone will not be enough to deliver the desired results.

Health and education workers need sufficient time, staffing and opportunities to carry out early childhood development activities, she said, adding that regular monitoring and accountability are also essential.

She noted that various government and development partner organisations working on ECD in Bangladesh have already developed locally relevant models.

"Instead of importing new models from abroad, effective initiatives developed locally can be incorporated into the government system," she added.

Mahmuda Akter, one of the participants of the seminar, said the needs of children with disabilities are often overlooked in discussions about early childhood development.

She said the needs of children with disabilities should be taken into account from the outset when designing early childhood development centres and developing their programmes.

"Simply building ramps cannot be considered inclusive education," she said, stressing the need for suitable curricula, books, learning materials, infrastructure and other necessary support for children with disabilities.

The speakers at the seminar also called for developing a sustainable framework for early childhood development backed by dedicated funding, adequate staffing, regular monitoring and stronger accountability.