Global Business Coalition for Education

Celebrating Universal Children’s Day: Engaging Business in Early Childhood Development

President of Intel Foundation, Rosalind Hudnell, participated in Theirworld’s #5for5 throwback photo action to support early childhood education.

November 20th marked Universal Children’s Day and many GBC-Education members joined celebrities, politicians, and world leaders to help generate awareness for and investment in early childhood development. GBC-Education members posted photographs of themselves between the ages 0 and 5 and signed the petition in support of Theirworld’s new #5for5 campaign.
The #5for5 campaign focuses on raising global awareness of early childhood development and pressuring world leaders to take urgent action to ensure that all children have access to the full range of nurturing care – including nutrition, health, learning, play, and protection.
By the age of five, 90% of a child’s brain has already developed, highlighting the importance of care, nourishment, and stimulation during the early years of a child’s life. Marginalized and impoverished children are put at a greater disadvantage as they often lack access to the support and resources they need to foster healthy development.
Children who begin school without support in the 0 to 5 years can have learning limitations that impact their potential for opportunities later in life.
Though researchers agree that investing in early childhood development can transcend the poverty cycle, tackle inequality and lead to higher potential for success in adulthood, investment in early interventions is still staggeringly low. Early interventions provide the best chance to level the playing field and close ability gaps early on, giving each child an equal chance at success, apart from social and economic barriers.
The International Commission on Financing Global Opportunity’s report, The Learning Generation: Investing in Education for a Changing World, states that total returns on early education are very high – in some cases up to $7 for every $1 spent – and returns on early nutrition can be many times higher.

This past summer, GBC-Education released a report outlining the business case for supporting early childhood development, detailing the economic and social benefits yielded by children, business, and society through investments in ECD programs. The approach focuses on increasing children’s access to comprehensive programs that emphasize early learning, child and maternal health, child care, and nutrition—aligning with the Sustainable Development Goal target 4.2 that all children “have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education.”

Join celebrities, world leaders, and other GBC-Education members in supporting Theirworld’s #5for5 campaign by signing the petition here.
The team at Oando helps raise awareness about the need for interventions in the early years.