Expanding Access to Integrated and Higher Quality ECD Services in Paraguay

pipeline

The Project aims at significantly increasing the access to quality and integrated early childhood development (ECD) services in Paraguay. The Project is specifically targeted to a sub-set of ECD direct beneficiaries (pregnant women and children aged 0-6 years old) in the 150 districts with the highest levels of combined (absolute and poverty) multidimensional poverty. The Project has three thematic/technical components and a fourth envisaged for Project management.Component 1 will support the development and delivery of "essential" packages of integrated services across different age groups. This component will comprise The integrated health package will include prenatal, newborn and child development and growth services for mothers and children 0-24 months old. These health services will be provided both at home and through the primary health care units in the community. The For the most vulnerable children, a special child safety/protection program (called "Abrazo") will be strengthened to complement the home and school based services provided by the Project. Lastly, services for child identification and registration after birth will be expanded in selected hospitals and health units.The Project will expand child care access for approximately xxxx children (0-36 months old), not receiving services now. The Project will increase coverage for 15% of new born children during the life of the project and will improve the home-based childcare programs managed by the Ministry of Education (MEC), supported by a package of integrated health, social protection and a unique child identification registration. To improve learning and school readiness for 3-5 year-old children, the project will improve the teaching practices and learning environments in pre-Kinder, Kinder, and Preschool. Six year-old children entering first grade will be assessed in different areas of school readiness. Approximately 500 school will benefit from improvements to their early education classrooms and provision of training and materials to the respective teaching force. The Project will support preschool curricular reforms and especial early learning programs (e.g., early stimulation, learning by playing, cognitive-social skills, and preliteracy and numeracy) as well as transition to first grade.Lastly, the project will support national and local ECD systems by contributing to the review and development of ECD normative (decrees and law); governance and coordination; curricular frameworks and child-centered pedagogical models; human resource training and community awareness; and common data and information platforms, as well as adaptation and piloting of child development and school readiness assessments.