Early Childhood Development Early Childhood Development (ECD) is a set of systematic and comprehensive education, nutrition and health interventions, as well as emotional and social stimulation for children between zero and six years of age. All of these approaches must be integrated, as each serves an important role in the child’s future success.

Comprehensive Early Childhood Development is a powerful social and financial investment for immediate results that grow into the future. As experts agree, it is one of the best tools to fight poverty and inequality. Research has shown that helping a child in the early stages of life has a multiplier effect for society. If the opportunity presented by the early years is missed, it becomes increasingly difficult, in terms of both time and resources, for a child to reach their full potential in life.

Societies can’t thrive if their children suffer. This is why, by breaking with the intergenerational cycle of poverty, ECD programs become a powerful tool in the accomplishment of the main objective in what concerns to development: give to people the possibility to live their lives in a productive and satisfactory way.

Why to invest in ECD?

A child's ability to think, establish relationships, and live up to his or her full potential is directly related to the synergistic effect of good health, good nutrition, and appropriate stimulation and interaction with others. A large body of research has proven the importance of an early development for the brain and the need for a good health and nutrition.

The benefits of ECD thereby encourage greater social equity, increase the efficacy of other investments, and address the needs of mothers while helping their children. Integrated programs for young children can modify the effects of socio-economic and gender-related inequities, some of the most entrenched causes of poverty. In conclusion, these programs are a great tool to that helps break with intergenerational cycle of poverty and has significant economic benefits. The following benefits have been related with early childhood integrated interventions: • Improved health and nutrition • Improved cognitive development and school achievement • Higher school enrollment • Less repetition and fewer dropouts • Reduction of social inequality • Generates community benefits by creating new jobs, especially for women, and enhancing respect for cultural and traditional values. • Early interventions yield higher returns as a preventive measure compared with remedial services later in life.

The following benefits have been related with early childhood integrated interventions:

• Improved health and nutrition
• Improved cognitive development and school achievement
• Higher school enrollment • Less repetition and fewer dropouts
• Reduction of social inequality
• Generates community benefits by creating new jobs, especially for women, and enhancing respect for cultural and traditional values.
• Early interventions yield higher returns as a preventive measure compared with remedial
  

According to the International Monetary Fund, the Latin American and Caribbean region is still below the developed world standards in terms of education, with figures that show that 50 million Latin Americans do not know how to neither read nor write. The Latin American and Caribbean countries invest less in education than other regions in development such as Eastern Asia.

The levels of schooling are also low in the continent, due to the fact that Latin Americans receive an average of six years of schooling compared to the nine years that are given in the countries member of the Organization for the Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). From the 92% of children that start school, only a 32% continue with their studies.

Unequal societies are less efficient in turning economic growth into poverty reduction. The existing gap between the income of the rich and the income of the poor is a reflection of the educational gap in Latin America. This gap continues to grow in a global economy where literacy, knowledge, and specific abilities are more crucial than ever for attaining a minimum salary.