Kizazi Kijacho Policy Brief

Overview

Launched in October 2022, nine months after the introduction of Tanzania’s National Multi-Sectoral Early Childhood Development Programme (NM-ECDP) in
December 2021, the Kizazi Kijacho (Next Generation) research programme is a major learning opportunity in the government’s journey towards effectively scaling early childhood development services – contributing to the evidence base on early childhood development outcomes, with an initial focus on the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.

In this policy brief, we outline the findings of a baseline survey that forms part of our large-scale study to assess the relative cost-effectiveness and impact of different bundles of early childhood development interventions, tracking their impact on parents, children, and communities in the Dodoma region over a 27-month period.

The findings we present here, while preliminary, outline some of the challenges facing families in terms of accessing services and support. But they also highlight the potential for government policy on early childhood development to make a difference – potentially at affordable cost and using existing national capacity. Crucially, we acknowledge the vital work already being carried out by community health workers and note that investment will be required if their services are to develop and expand beyond health and nutrition to include early learning, responsive caregiving and child safety and security.