EFA Goal 1: Early childhood care and education; Asia ... - Unicef

Contents
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Executive summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. Background on early childhood care and education . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.1 Definitions of early childhood care and education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
2.2 Why ECCE is important for policy-makers to address – Rationale for holistic ECCE . . . . . . . . . . . .5
3. Issues surrounding the EFA Goal 1 in the region at the time of
Dakar 2000: Scope and challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.1 Scope of the goal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
3.2 Progress and overview of trends in ECCE in the Asia-Pacific region. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
3.3 Policy-making for early childhood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
4. ECCE with equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
4.1 Addressing wealth inequities through ECCE: Access for vulnerable and disadvantaged children . . 14
4.2 Addressing gender inequities through ECCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4.3 Addressing language inequities in ethnolinguistic and indigenous communities: The value of
multilingual education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
4.4 Holistic ECCE addresses the health and well-being of young children and coordination among
sectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
4.5 Standards and guidelines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
4.6 The quality imperative in ECCE services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
4.7 Disparities due to poverty and limited parental awareness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4.8 Summary of challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
4.9 Summary of priority areas for the region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5. Recommendations and strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
5.1 Recommendations for evidence-based policy and advocacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
5.2 Recommendations for improving access for children in vulnerable and disadvantaged
circumstances. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
5.3 Recommendations for providing holistic ECCE, governance and strengthening national
coordinating mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
5.4 Recommendations for improving standards, guidelines and training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5 Recommendations for strengthening community and family involvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
6. Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Statistical annex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
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