A global call to action for early childhood

Engaging the private and public sectors in Brazil: A multisectoral approach to ECCD
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Launching of the Millennium Fund for Early Childhood with the presence of the State Governor, private sector leaders (Gerdau Group and RBS Chairmen,
among others), and former UNESCO Brasilia Office Director, Porto Alegre, September 2003.
Brasil: UNESCO
play and learn, thereby broadening
their cultural universe, increasing their
capacity to socialise with others, and
building positive values.
An important part of the Millennium
Fund structure is its Advisory Council,
a consultative body that holds
quarterly meetings to oversee the
implementation of the programme.
Council members include UNESCO, the
Mauricio Sirotsky Sobrinho Foundation,
Gerdau Institute, and a number of
state institutions.
Over the past three and a half
years, the Millennium Fund for Early
Childhood has established Educational
Boards in twelve cities in the southern
states of Rio Grande do Sul and
Santa Catarina. By the end of 2006,
the programme had trained 1,010
educators from eighty-seven early
childhood centres, benefiting 8,400
children from 0 to 6 years of age.
Impact to date
The Millennium Fund for Early
Childhood has increased the
effectiveness of ECCE institutions
and their ability to act as an effective
bridge to formal schooling. The media
campaigns to enlist support for the
programme have also contributed
to an increase in public awareness
of the importance of ECCD and
highlighted the positive impacts of
effective ECCE provided by specially
trained staff. As a result of the
programme’s work, one of the
largest steel companies in the world,
Gerdau Group, decided to become
an official partner of the programme
and is supporting its extension to
other Brazilian states (four so far). In
addition to their financial support,
the Gerdau Group’s participation has
acted as a catalyst for other companies
to become programme partners. A
recent television campaign led by the
3 For example, M. N. McCain & J. M. Fraser, The Early Years Study: Final Report, Toronto: Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, 1999; Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Starting Strong: Early Childhood, Education and Care. Paris, 2001 [Brazilian edition: UNESCO Brasil,
OECD, and Ministério da Saúde, Educação e Cuidado na Primeira Infância: Grandes Desafios, Brasília: UNESCO, 2002]; UNESCO, Early Childhood Services
in Brazil: Some Considerations on Services for Crèches and Preschools and on Co-ordination of Public Policies for Early Childhood [in Portuguese: Os
Serviços para a Criança de 0 a 6 Anos no Brasil: Algumas Considerações sobre o Atendimento em Creches e Pré-Escolas e sobre Articulação de Políticas,
Brasília: UNESCO, 2003]; UNICEF, Situação da infância brasileira, 2001: Desenvolvimento Infantil, Relatório, Brasilia: UNICEF, 2001; World Bank, Brazil –
Early Child Development: A Focus on the Impact of Preschools, Report, Washington, 2001.
COORDINATORS’ NOTEBOOK: ISSUE 29