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Exploring Evidence-Informed Solutions to Support Women and Children in Crisis-Affected Settings

The Center for Global Development has been working to inform an innovative approach to addressing challenges in settings affected by fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV), which brings together the early childhood development (ECD), childcare, and gender equality sectors to center FCV investments around children and their caregivers. The first piece of our work in this space has been exploring multilateral development bank financing and programs for childcare in FCV countries (more below).

The second piece of our work has been developing key partnerships, such as with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), to bridge work in the ECD, childcare, and women’s economic empowerment (WEE) sectors. This included collaborating with IRC in May to convene a roundtable discussion on Advancing Solutions in Conflict, Crisis, and Displacement: Lessons from Early Childhood and Childcare Programming and Investments, geared towards taking stock of how foreign assistance can do better to meet the needs of crisis-affected populations, with a focus on quality financing and programming. 

This blog post outlines the key insights from that convening and highlights its relevance to current policy opportunities like the International Development Association (IDA) replenishment, IDA21 (see more on that in this related blog post)

The roundtable discussion convened participants across sectors including representatives from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) including the Bureau for Inclusive Growth, Partnerships, and Innovation; the Development Innovation Ventures; US State Department; the World Bank; the International Finance Corporation; the Inter-American Development Bank; the Islamic Development Bank; the Asian Development Bank; and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. Research presentations from IRC and CGD grounded the event in evidence and provided a basis for discussion. Participants sought to build a greater understanding of and exchange knowledge on what works, for whom, and with the greatest impact in FCV settings, and to identify where there are critical gaps in research, financing, and programs. 

Lessons from IRC’s evaluation of Ahlan Simsim

IRC presented lessons from their experience serving crisis-affected families. One evidence-based approach which can de-risk future public investments is Ahlan Simsim (‘Welcome Sesame’ in Arabic), a transformative initiative which allowed IRC and Sesame Workshop to come together to deliver and scale up ECD programs, services and resources for families impacted by conflict, crisis, and displacement. 

Ahlan Simsim combined ECD programs and services for children and caregivers with educational media–including Sesame Workshop’s Arabic-language TV show, also titled Ahlan Simsim. Aspiring for access, quality, and scale, Ahlan Simsim’s programs were delivered by IRC teams and local civil society organizations, and in partnership with government ministries. Ahlan Simsim sought to meet the immediate needs of young children, and design interventions with long-term sustainability. Program examples include preschool programs, parenting support, and the integration of ECD guidance into primary healthcare.

In six years, the Ahlan Simsim initiative launched numerous cross-sectoral programs, directly supporting over 3.8 million children and caregivers across the arc of crisis and in varied settings from Iraq and Jordan to Lebanon and Syria. More than 29 million children have viewed the Ahlan Simsim TV show. Research evaluating the initiative has highlighted the cost-effective impact of Ahlan Simsim's programs. Notably, a study conducted by NYU-TIES for Children found that Ahlan Simsim's 11-week remote preschool program in Lebanon resulted in learning gains for five-six-year-olds equivalent to a full year of in-person preschool. 

This experience provided valuable insights and recommendations with broad implications beyond child development. We also know how much it costs to implement this program, filling a crucial gap in the lack of evidence on cost-efficient delivery and investment in crisis settings. 

Lessons from CGD’s forthcoming review of Multilateral Development Bank’s childcare investments in FCV contexts

The convening was an opportunity for CGD to present the preliminary analysis of multilateral development bank (MDB) childcare projects in FCV contexts from 2006-2021, which builds on a previous analysis of MDB childcare programs. This research identified significant gaps in financing and programs across countries, regions, and MDBs, particularly regional development banks. Only half of FCS countries and four out of nine MDBs had childcare projects, as they have been largely concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa by the World Bank. The maximum number of childcare projects launched annually during that time period across all MDBs was nine in FCV settings, the vast majority of which featured childcare as a subcomponent of a larger project. These results point to substantial opportunities for MDBs to expand their portfolios on childcare in these contexts to meet provision gaps, support WEE and ECD, and contribute to livelihoods and economic development.

Since May, this analysis has been updated for an extended time period, January 2000 to June 2024, revealing that the consistent trend in increasing programs peaked in 2021 and has since declined, despite increased attention to childcare following the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ongoing work aims to complement the quantitative analysis with qualitative research with MDB focal points and project task team leaders to better understand lessons learned, effective programs across different contexts, and what is needed to scale up programs and increase investments in childcare in FCV countries. Look out for this analysis in the coming months.

Key takeaways from the roundtable discussion

  1. Donors recognize the importance of ECD and childcare in FCV contexts. Despite the fact that there are many competing priorities, both bilateral and multilateral donors acknowledged the importance of ECD and childcare within FCV contexts, including as a pathway to support WEE and livelihoods. It is imperative that donors continue to support greater responsiveness to community needs, investment in evidence generation of models that work, and funding to local partners to increase scale and sustainability.

  2. Important evidence gaps remain, and there is an appetite for knowledge sharing. The recognition of the importance of ECD and childcare in FCV affected-countries was accompanied by an interest from participants in knowledge sharing on context-specific, evidence-based approaches, as designing effective programs in FCV contexts poses increased challenges for donors. Research, consistent metrics, and data disaggregation also remain key to forward movement and demand generation.

  3. Partnerships are key to developing effective and holistic programs. As the bilateral and multilateral ECD and childcare portfolios in FCV continue to develop, partnerships are key to providing sustained, long-term, cross-sectoral programs needed for impact and to enable financing continuity. Development and humanitarian financiers alike must take into consideration and collaborate with a wider ecosystem of actors to ensure FCV populations can be reached and gender analyses are meaningfully integrated in creating ECD and childcare programs.

Achieving the greatest possible impact in FCV settings requires taking an innovative approach. Ensuring sustained investment, generating relevant evidence, and establishing cross-sectoral partnerships will be vital. We hope you’ll join us to move the needle in these three areas as we continue our work in this space. 

Disclaimer

CGD blog posts reflect the views of the authors, drawing on prior research and experience in their areas of expertise. CGD is a nonpartisan, independent organization and does not take institutional positions.


Image credit for social media/web: Dominic Chavez/World Bank