ECA’S move to enrich wisdom of children, parents
ABU DHABI: The Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority (ECA) has revealed details of ‘Takween’ Summer Programme 2021, featuring a variety of developmental, educational and recreational activities to be implemented in collaboration with various stakeholders.
The programme begins on Sunday and will continue until the end of this year, said an ECA press release on Sunday. It aims at utilising summer vacation to develop skills in children and parents, fostering parent-child interactions, and improving quality time children spend with their parents during holidays and vacations.
By organising several activities that focus on early childhood development (ECD), the programme also targets engaging and introducing all community members and institutions to the importance of the child’s early years.
In this regard, Thamer Rashid Al Qasemi, Executive Director of ECA’S Special Projects and Partnerships Sector, said, “Summer activities contribute to developing children’s abilities and skills during their early childhood, strengthening family cohesion, and improving the quality of comprehensive care provided by parents to children.
“Since the establishment of ECA, we have been keen to integrate summer activities into our multi-sectoral strategy, to be an integral part of our strategic approach based on knowledge, engagement and innovation. Through this approach, we seek to empower children and community by focusing on four sectors: health and nutrition, child protection, family support, and early care and education.”
Al Qasemi added: “The multiplicity of developmental dimensions during early childhood requires consistency between multiple sectors. In addition, many international studies showed that intervention in one sector is not sufficient to achieve beter outcomes. Therefore, we are keen on coordinating between relevant entities in all sectors to ensure consistency and complementarity of efforts.”
He pointed out the four areas of ECA’S focus cover children’s all needs during early childhood, as well as promoting their development and well-being. He further added that ECA seeks to utilise the great potentials provided by Abu Dhabi government entities, by aligning plans and programmes with the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Strategy 2035, to achieve the best outcomes for all children. “All our activities ultimately aim at achieving ECA’S goals to ensure all children have the necessary personal foundations for healthy physical and social-emotional development and early learning; all children live in a stable and secure environment and are protected from harm and danger; and parents are confident and have the capabilities to support their children’s holistic development and well-being,” Al Qasemi explained.