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Improving the quality of early childhood care at scale: The effects of “From Zero to Forever”

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  • Bernal, Raquel
  • Ramírez, Sara María

Abstract

The focus in developing countries is shifting from increasing access to early childhood care services to improving its quality. In light of the inclusion of early childhood development in the UN Sustainable Development Goals, there has emerged a global call for early childhood programs that integrate nutrition, health and development components. However, large-scale studies of integrated early childhood interventions are scarce in developing countries, and thus, little is known about its effectiveness and sustainability. In this paper we study the immediate and medium-run effects of a large-scale expansion of an integrated package of services including care, education, health and nutrition on child growth and development, by analyzing the expansion of the Colombian national early childhood strategy known as “From Zero to Forever” between 2011 and 2013. The results indicate that the increased access to integrated center-based care had a large immediate effect on vocabulary that persists five years into the intervention, and less robust effects on nutritional status.

Suggested Citation

  • Bernal, Raquel & Ramírez, Sara María, 2019. "Improving the quality of early childhood care at scale: The effects of “From Zero to Forever”," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 91-105.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:118:y:2019:i:c:p:91-105
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.02.012
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    4. Collins, Tara M. & Wright, Laura H.V., 2022. "The challenges for children’s rights in international child protection: Opportunities for transformation," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Early childhood development; Early education; Poverty; Impact evaluation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • H43 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Project Evaluation; Social Discount Rate

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