In Kenya’s Nairobi County, about one in six children aged between 0-3 years do not reach their developmental milestones. Approximately one in five children in the same age group are stunted, while one in ten are underweight. This is according to findings of a baseline study on the state of Early Childhood Development (ECD) in Nairobi, conducted by the Aga Khan University’s Institute for Human Development (IHD).
Considering the vital role of play in the healthy development of children, the study found that only one in ten parents with children aged 0-3 years reported having access to playgrounds. In areas where the play spaces were available; they were observed to be either of poor quality, insecure, overtaken by informal and unregulated activities or not accessible to younger children.
The study also found that an alarming 77% of children aged between 5-6 years in Nairobi County were not school ready. These children were finishing their pre-primary school year without full mastery of the educational content.
Household food insecurity emerged as a major concern with 21.8% of households classified as food insecure. The study highlighted food insecurity as a key factor linked to increased chances of depressive symptoms among caregivers, alongside pregnancy complications and child hospitalisation.
The caregivers’ mental wellbeing was also highlighted with concern. Findings showed that around one in seven parents exhibited depressive symptoms and nearly one in ten showed signs of anxiety.
“Our data was obtained from among others, over 3,000 households that we visited; 944 children whom we saw in over 100 ECD centres, and 200 teachers whom we talked to,” said Prof Amina Abubakar, Director, IHD. “We conducted this survey to describe the current state of ECD in Nairobi, to identify strategic intervention points, and to avail data that can be used to measure progress when interventions to improve the situation are rolled out.”
Funded by Big Win Philanthropy, the baseline study targeted two groups of children across all 17 sub-counties in Nairobi: children aged between 0-3 and 4-6- years-old. The study sought to establish the children’s developmental outcomes; examine care giver practices, household attitudes, and cultural practices relevant to ECD; provide an overview of existing ECD policies and platforms; and assess the quality of the pre-primary education including integration of play-based learning. The study findings informed the design of Nairobi City County government’s ECD programme. The study highlighted, among others, the interventions to be prioritised and implementation guidelines that will help children in Nairobi have the best start in life.
Through the ECD programme, the County is implementing various initiatives with the goal of ensuring that all children in Nairobi develop to their full potential. Some of these initiatives include: conducting school health education and promotion activities in ECD centres, schools, and informal settlements to promote nurturing care practices among caregivers; building the capacity of child care workers in the provision of quality, stimulating, and nurturing childcare services; expanding access to childcare centres especially for children from vulnerable households; and, designing and constructing child play-spaces in communities with open spaces.
“We are thankful to the Aga Khan University for conducting this quality research which has become the basis for Nairobi County’s ECD programme,” said Hon Johnson Sakaja, Governor, Nairobi City County. “ECD is a great equalizer. If you give children a good start in life then you pave the way for all of them to achieve their dreams and ultimately, we have a higher chance of better outcomes which is what we want. Through the County’s ECD programme, we aim, among other initiatives, to: train 10,000 childcare providers to provide nurturing and stimulating care; equip 7,820 Community Health Promoters (CHPs) to provide parental coaching on nurturing care; train 1,000 pre-primary teachers to deliver play-based learning in all Early Childhood Development Education centres, and construct three playgrounds in every ward to support play-based learning.”
Extensive empirical evidence indicates that the first eight years of a child’s life are crucial because they experience rapid physical, social and emotional growth. However, in many low- and middle-income countries, challenges like poverty, poor nutrition and limited access to health and education make it harder for children to grow and thrive.
