Early Childhood Care and Education

The report analyses the ways in which unpaid care work is recognised and organised, the extent and quality of care jobs and their impact on the well-being of individuals and society. A key focus of this report is the persistent gender inequalities in households and the labour market, which are inextricably linked with care work.

This paper shows that pre-primary education has not yet achieved the level of priority necessary in domestic policies and budgets, with nearly all low-income countries dedicating less than 5 per cent of their education budgets to pre-primary education. The most disadvantaged, marginalised and vulnerable, who stand to gain the most from investments in pre-primary education, are frequently left behind.

This report considers international research on the impact of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) provision upon children's development, using studies reported from a wide range of sources including journals, books, government reports and diverse organisation reports.