By Mwai Mtumodzi
Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare Mary Navicha says the government remains committed to ensuring that every child has the opportunity to grow, learn, develop and succeed.
She made the remarks in Lilongwe during the official opening of the Stakeholder Consultative Workshop for the Federer Foundation Malawi Country Strategy Implementation Plan.
She said the foundation for learning is laid in the earliest years of life.
“When children receive quality early childhood development, nurturing care, stimulation, protection and early learning opportunities, they are more likely to enter school ready to learn, progress through the education system and contribute meaningfully to national development,” said Navicha.
She described the workshop as an important platform for reviewing the progress, achievements, and impact of the six-year School Readiness Initiative in Malawi, as well as gathering stakeholder input into the new implementation plan. She said the approach reflects the kind of evidence-based and consultative processes needed for national development.
She said the School Readiness Initiative, implemented in collaboration with government ministries, district councils, development partners, caregivers, parents, and communities, has supported over 2,500 Community-Based Childcare Centres (CBCCs), strengthened caregiver capacity, promoted learning through play, and improved early learning environments and school linkages.
However, the minister acknowledged that challenges remain, noting that many children still enter Standard One without adequate school readiness skills, while CBCCs continue to face constraints, including inadequate infrastructure, limited learning materials, low caregiver motivation, weak monitoring systems, and sustainability issues.
Country Director for Federer Foundation, Malawi, Martha Khonje, has called for massive investment in early childhood development learning.
“We need as a country to address gaps in early childhood development. For the past years that we have been working in Malawi, we have discovered that only half of the population of children have access to early childhood development lessons,” she said.
Khonje said strengthening ECD is critical for human capital development and urged improved support for caregivers, many of whom work as volunteers, as well as better infrastructure and adequate teaching and learning materials.
