Dubai Cares rolls out ECD initiatives

dubai — Dubai Cares has announced the launch of two early childhood development (ECD) programmes in Comoros and The Gambia.

Annina Mattsson, programmes director at Dubai Cares, said: “Positive parenting practices greatly enhance children’s brain development, especially during the first 1,000 days of life. Our two new programmes in Comoros and The Gambia, aim to impact young children and parents by improving pre-school and primary education and enhancing parenting practices for ECD.”

In Comoros, Dubai Cares is rolling out a four-year programme, in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef), spending Dh7.35million. It aims to improve the school readiness of children in order to start primary school and enhance lower primary school girls’ and boys’ learning outcomes and retention rates.

In addition, the programme aims to develop and disseminate procedures that could improve the classroom environment for four and five year olds, as well as raise awareness around communitybased schools. The programme is set to benefit at least 269,382 children and 1,725 teachers, school head teachers and inspectors across all the 394 primary schools in the Comoros Islands.

Oustadh Charif, head master of a primary school benefiting from the programme in Comoros, said: “Through Dubai Cares’ programme, children are now more motivated to learn with stories that relate to their life thanks to the new school books with local content related to Comoros. Children hear names and stories that they know and situations that are familiar to them. They are curious and eager to know more.”

Dubai Cares has also partnered with Unicef in The Gambia to improve parenting knowledge and practice so that parents can better nurture the development of children aged between zero and three.

The Dh1.84million programme also seeks to create awareness around the rights of young children, responsibilities of parents in delivering on those rights as well as documenting and replicating good practices. The programme is set to benefit 1,200 young parents and 1,500 children. Nuha Jatta, education specialist from Unicef in The Gambia, said: “We believe the programme will reach hundreds of parents to boost their parenting skills that will stimulate their children’s cognitive development and growth.” —