South Africa’s complex ECD ecosystem
The greatest Essential Package gaps exist for children and caregivers in the poorest 60% of households, specifically in terms of early learning, caregiver support services and access to nutrition. The most appropriate outcome measure of the combined effect of these services on young children is the Thrive by Five Index, a composite measure of children’s readiness for formal schooling. In this respect, only 43% of children in ELPs are developmentally on track.
Where the ECD ecosystem falls short
Service provision is driven locally and largely informally by women in the communities in which they live, with little government support, acknowledgement, and resources. The system is currently failing both our children and these women.
Government systems that are meant to support, scale, and sustain ECD programmes are not accessible to these locally run programmes, significantly impacting their sustainability. Civil society organisations have developed innovative mechanisms to leverage these local resources as a strength and support them. The ecosystem must enable better linkages between these women-led community initiatives, government, and civil society. With greater interdependence and cooperation between stakeholders, services and support can expand to reach all children and their caregivers.
The Essential Package has many ‘moving parts’. Without a focused and cohesive process of central planning, coordination, programme design, monitoring, and public communication, the scale-up of all the aspects of an Essential Package of services for all children is likely to be slow, inefficient, and disjointed.
The Ilifa strategy identifies seven interdependent components in the ECD ecosystem that can ensure all children and their caregivers receive the Essential Package. We aim to improve the overall functioning of the ECD ecosystem by removing obstacles and creating links for collaboration and referrals between interdependent stakeholders.
Ilifa’s desired destination is an ECD ecosystem that is publicly planned, publicly coordinated, and publicly funded but relies on localised community-led initiatives that draw from and embrace women’s critical role, participation, and leadership.