More than half of children under six, around 3.8 million, in South Africa are not in any early learning programme. This gap is not incidental. Our new research brief maps the systemic forces behind the mass exclusion of young children from early learning opportunities and why fixing it requires accelerated effort.
The consequences are visible in children’s development. Data from the Thrive by Five Indexes shows a stark divide: children in higher-fee programmes are significantly more likely to reach key developmental milestones than children in lower-fee ones.
Issues explored in the research brief include:
– Costs faced by early learning programme providers
– Regulatory landscape
– Reliance on user fees
The research brief was written by Dr Elizabeth Biney, PhD Biney, Research Specialist, and Dr Colin Almeleh, Director of Knowledge, Information, and Data Systems – both at Ilifa Labantwana.
