EFFECT OF COVID-19 ON EARLY LEARNING AND CARE ACROSS AFRICA
Abstract
This study reviewed the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on early childhood and childcare systems in Africa, with particular focus on children aged between 0 and 8 years, their caregivers, and the early childhood education workforce. Using a qualitative research approach, the study adopted a systematic review of literature and secondary data analysis in extracting information from over 150 credible sources, such as reports by global institutions including UNICEF, UNESCO, the World Bank, and Human Rights Watch. Data were analyzed thematically to assess the effect of the pandemic on the education access, emotional development, nutritional status, protection services, and overall development of young children. The research focused on reaching vulnerable populations, namely children from poor families, children in slum settlements, working mothers, and communities with limited access to digital infrastructure. Purposive sampling was used to reach countries and areas where disruption of education has been most significant, especially those with existing disparities in access to Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE). The report also points out that there are important gaps in service provision, where most of the children were unable to access online learning platforms due to the absence of internet connectivity, digital media, or parental support. Furthermore, ECCE services, which are considered non-essential, were disproportionately ignored in national crisis response plans, leading to the closure of childcare centers and early childhood educators' precarious employment—most of them being women without social protection working in the informal sector. The crisis highlighted developmental risk factors among young children under the age of three, including exposure to toxic stress, malnutrition due to broken school feeding systems, and disruption of early learning stimulation at a time of brain development. Inadequate systems of coordinated care support for teachers and caregivers compounded these problems further. This paper calls for prompt evidence-based policy action to strengthen ECCE systems and make them inclusive in times of crisis. Some of the most important recommendations include providing financial and technical support to early learning centers, improving digital equity for online learning, mainstreaming ECCE into emergency education responses, and improving intersectoral collaboration to meet the overall needs of children and families. Without these interventions, the long-term developmental and educational losses young children incurred during the pandemic could become irreversible.
Key Words: COVID – 19, Pandemic, Education
CITATION: Isaboke, H. G. (2020). Effect of COVID-19 on early learning and care across Africa. The Strategic Journal of Business & Change Management, 8 (2), 1725 – 1749.
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