Human Development 200 N,,JONAL 49,1,V February 2002 I ,t Fp |Findings reports on ongoing operational, economic, and sector work carried out by the World Bank and its member govemments in the Africa Region. It is published periodically by the WORLD BA N K Knowledge and Leaming Center on behalf of the Region. The views expressed in Findings are those of the author/s and should not be attributed to the World Bank Group. Early Childhood Development A99 9 11 in Cape Verde and Guinea 2 3 5 6 8 Kt is now widely recognized that ernization Project. In Guinea, this early intervention programs are sector work will support the one of the most effective ways to government's Education for All plan build human capital and break the to improve learning quality, eradi- cycle of poverty. Yet, the amount cate child illiteracy, and reduce spent on early childhood care and adult illiteracy. education (ECCE) varies consider- The study attempts to extract ably, and no single approach has general guidelines on implications A been identified as a universal model for adaptation and implementation * w to suit every cultural context. If of different program options to in- poor countries are to initiate and form educational planning. Review- _ ] maintain effective ECCE programs, ing the country context, it describes it is necessary to identify interven- the range of early childhood pro- _ tions that are both cost effective and grams in operation and explores the adaptable to meet the needs of dif- impact of these programs on ferent communities and countries. children's cognitive and physical * ; As part of the World Bank's ef- development, identifying for both fort to amass the building blocks countries the characteristics of the 0 to determine both the feasibility of most effective interventions. * and best practices for investing in The study addresses five main early childhood care and develop- research questions: * m ment, the sector study examines l.What is the overall status and early childhood programs in a rela- profile of preschool or ECD (Early tively wealthy African country- Childhood Development ) pro- Cape Verde-in comparison with a grams in the targeted countries? I relatively poor country-Guinea. 2.What factors determine child en- - ; Based on the understanding that rollment in preschool or ECCD _ there is no blueprint for the imple- (Early Childhood Care and Devel- mentation and support of early opment) programs? * childhood activities, particularly in 3.To what extent does preschool low-income African countries, it attendance influence child devel- emphasizes that the feasibility of opment? * different approaches may, to a large 4.What programs or program char- extent, be country specific. In Cape acteristics appear to be most ef- Verde, the sector work is being con- fective in terms of child develop- W U T ducted under the Education and ment? (What types or character- Training Consolidation and Mod- istics of the surveyed preschool programs are most Indicator Guinea Cape Verde five islands (Santiago, associated with or ex- 60 percent; Maio, Fogo, plain child develop- Per capita GNP (US$) 550 960 Sal, and Sao Nicolau). ment gains?) Under age 5 mortality (per 1,000) 207 64 Sixty percent of the cen- Malnutrition 29% 19% Sixty peren lofathedi cen- 5.What are the policy Immunized for measles 56% 82% ters were located in ei- implications of these Pre-primary school enrollment 9% 30% ther urban or semi-ur- programs in terms of Grade 1 enrollment 54% 100% ban areas, and 40 per- beneficiaries, costs, cent were in rural areas. financing, and imple- Source: World Bank 1999 The distribution accord- mentation? ing to the type of centers was the following: pub- Section II of the study summa- of the centers surveyed, a random lic, 50 percent; private, 18 percent; rizes the concept of ECCD and its sample of 15 five-year-old children NGO, 11 percent; community, 12 relevance for poverty alleviation in and their families were surveyed, percent; religious, 9 percent. the African context. Section III de- and for each center, 10 five-year- scribes the methodology used for old children from the same location Findings and recommendations the study. Sections IV, V, VI, and and with similar socioeconOmiC VII examine the findings and policy characteristics who did not attend Preschool education can be a implications from the Cape Verde preschool formed the control group. double-edged sword that can both and Guinea surveys, including a Cross-tabs and multivariate analy- alleviate and exacerbate disparities. description of the ECCD sector and sis were used to compare the two Preschool services can have an an analysis of the determinants of groups and the incidence of vari- equalizing effect on the cognitive preschool attendance and impact ables for the cognitive and physi- development of poor children, com- on child development. Section VIIII cal development of children. These pensating for disadvantaged socio- concludes with a summary of find- analyses were done separately for economic backgrounds. Even if pre- ings and principal policy implica- each country. Two types of instru- schools cannot entirely close the tions of the research, identifies ad- ments were applied: questionnaires cognitive development gap between ditional issues, and makes recom- addressed to the teachers and per- rich and poor children, a lack of mendations for future action. sonnel in the centers and to fami- early stimulation programs can The study applies a survey meth- lies, and cognitive development widen the gap in a relatively well- odology defining cognitive and tests to assess the children and the off country. Public policy should physical development as dependent program's impact. emphasize the support of ECCD variables, and individual charac- In Guinea, the sample was de- programs for poor and disadvan- teristics of the children (such as signed in a two-phase approach: a taged children. The provision of age, gender, health status, socio- sample of 36 preschool centers and subsidized programs for lower-in- economic status, and family char- 900 children from Conakry and come families could, in addition to acteristics) and variables related to four additional geographic regions reducing disparities in school readi- the preschool/ECCD programs (Moyenne Guinee, Haute Guinee, ness among children from differ- (such as student/teacher ratio, Basse Guinee, Guinee Forestiere). ent socioeconomic status (SES) lev- (such as student/teacher ralsalstfreiothrsoo,indem qualification of teachers, type of The samples were derived from a els, also free mothers to find em- program, urban or rural settings, first-stage sample of 460 centers ployment, thus improving house- private or public program, overall and 1,089 teachers. Of the 36 pre- hold income levels. cost structure) as the two groups school centers, 64 percent were More and better can be done with of independent variables. A sample ecoles maternelles, 22 percent were less. High-cost programs may not of preschool centers was designed Community Education Centers necessarily produce the best re- in each of the countries, taking into (CECs), and 14 percent were jardins sults. Low-cost preschools need not account the variability of socioeco- d'enfants. In Cape Verde, the sacrifice quality. Many such pre- nomic levels, geographic distribu- sample consisted of 34 centers and schools are effective, producing tion, and types of programs. In both 850 children and their families with high cognitive development scores Guinea and Cape Verde, for each a geographic distribution covering at low unit costs. Traditional, gov- ernment-supported approaches and the policies it promulgates should focus on the more efficient with highly paid teachers and for- should work within a realistic in- use and distribution of public-sec- mal training do not automatically vestment framework. In Guinea, tor resources. The preschools that guarantee high cognitive develop- where preschool enrollment is low have enjoyed the greatest success ment scores. Short, focused, reli- and public resources for providing at the least cost should be studied able, and contextualized training ECCD programs are scant, the gov- further and replicated. Focused can be more efficient and less costly ernment can establish a support- ECCD-related training should be than most available formal train- ive policy framework that creates provided to public sector teachers. ing programs. Community-based an environment in which private- Resources to benefit the poor could programs, such as the CECs in sector and community ECCD ini- be redistributed by levying user Guinea, appear promising, in part tiatives can flourish. This could charges on wealthier households, because of parental involvement take many different forms, such as limiting public preschool access to and financing and the proximity of (a) supporting IEC (Information, poor families, or providing poor the locally resident teacher, who is Education and Communication) families with subsidies (scholar- able to spend more time at the and parental education campaigns ships, uniforms, nutrition, or health school. The wide variation in effec- about the importance of early child- services) to encourage enrollment. tiveness of preschools, at many dif- hood education and care; (b) pilot- What are the next steps in support- ferent price points, indicates that ing low-cost, community-supported ing ECCD in Africa? This study there are many factors that influ- ECCD models based on promising highlights several issues that re- ence a preschool's success. Closer indigenous programs; (c) creating quire further investigation, ranging examination of what makes indig- ECCD start-up credit funds; or (d) from the longer-term impact of pre- enous models of ECCD successful developing non-burdensome guide- school on the performance of pri- is warranted, particularly in the lines and guidance for community mary school students and the elu- case of the CEC programs in programs. sive factors that make a preschool Guinea but also in other Government can improve effi- effective to how best to expand ac- francophone African countries that ciency and equity. In Cape Verde, cess to preschool programs with- have similar types of initiatives. where the public sector is already out raising public expenditure bur- Governmentplays a critical role in providing a significant proportion dens or pricing poor parents out of supporting ECCD programs. The of the population with preschool the preschool market. The govern- services the government provides services, the government role ment of Guinea-with World Bank F in d in g s Findings can be accessed via the World Bank Group's website at http://wwuw.worldbank.org/ Click on Publications, then Periodicals. Or, Findings would also be of interest to: click on Countries and Regions, then Africa Name Institution Letters, comments, and requests for publications not Address available at the World Bank Bookstore should be addressed to: Editor, Findings Operational Quality and Knowledge Services Africa Region, The World Bank 1818 H Street NW, Room J-5-055 Washington, D.C. 20433 e-mail: pmohan@worldbank.org assistance-will initiate ECCD pi- Policy implications: What can lot programs in the country's two government and donors do? Jaramillo, A., and K. Tietjen. poorest regions to provide a more 2001. Early Childhood Development in-depth and qualitative look at the * Create a supportive policy frame- in Africa: Can We do More and Bet- features of successful programs, as work; ter for Less? A Look at the Impact well as their costs, and to replicate * Encourage community and Pri- and Implications of Preschools in them within the framework sug- vate-sector ECCD initiatives; Cape Verde and Guinea. The World gested by this study (community- * Develop IEC and parental educa- Bank Africa Region Human Devel- based and parent-supported cen- tion campaigns; and opment Series. Washington, D.C.: ters). In Cape Verde, several of the * Work within a realistic invest- World Bank. Principal researchers: research findings-in particular, ment framework. Karen Tiejen and Bruno Suchaut, the equitable allocation of pre- Ph.D. For more information, please school resources and the effective- e-mail Ajaramillo@worldbank.org ness of government preschools- are subjects of the policy dialogue taking place between the govern- ment and the World Bank.