Family centered early childhood development: a case of Rongo Subcounty, Migori Kenya

Abstract

The early childhood period from conception to three years is critical in a child’s health, well-being and brain development. Proper care and stimulation therefore, contributes to a child’s productivity that lasts through childhood to adulthood. It is estimated that globally, 43% of children under five years are at risk of failing to achieve their developmental potential. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), this portion is approximately 66%. The Kenya Demographic Health Survey (KDHS) 2022 revealed that 21% of children in Kenya aged 24-59 months are not developmentally on track. A higher percentage of children in urban (87%) than rural (73%) areas are developmentally on track. The percentage of children developmentally on track increases with increasing mothers’ education from 51% among children whose mothers have no education to 91% among those whose mothers have more than secondary education. The percentage of children developmentally on track also increases with increasing household wealth from 61% among children in the lowest wealth quantile to 93% among those in the highest quantile. This therefore calls for parenting/caregiving programmes that targets parents/caregivers from the lowest household wealth index as well as those with mothers having lowest education levels. Lwala Community Alliance with funding from Comic Relief piloted a Family Centered earlcy childhood development (ECD) program in North Kamagambo ward, Rongo Subcounty, Migori County Kenya in 2021. The long-term goal of the program was to ensure that children under the age of five years reach their developmental potential in a nurturing care environment supported by responsive and sensitive men and women caregivers. The community health volunteers (CHW) through household visitation, group parenting sessions, and facility-based education sessions implemented the program. This was meant to improve outcomes across child health, caregiver support, health worker capacity, and the enabling environment. Building on the success of the pilot, an evaluation and baseline study was conducted to explore the outcome of the pilot intervention and to upscale the program into three new wards in Rongo Subcounty. In order to accomplish this, baseline data was collected in three areas (East Kamagambo, Central Kamagambo and South Kamagambo) where scaling up of the program will happen before commencement of intervention activities. Findings revealed that the primary caregiver plays a critical role in caring for young children during the day by providing care for children’s basic needs. It was noted that households in North Kamagambo introduced complementary foods after the recommended six months as compared to the other three wards where other foods were introduced to babies before six months are over. Findings further revealed that there was a significant increase in knowledge especially on child rights and abuse from baseline, midline and end line in North Kamagambo with 86%, 90% and 91%, respectively. Caregivers’ ability to identify signs of a child who has been abused seemed good across the four locations. Caregivers in North Kamagambo provided higher levels of nurturing care to their children compared to caregivers in other wards