By Bishop Witmos

Mangochi, January 29, Mana: Deputy Minister of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, Halima Daudi encouraged parents and guardians in Mangochi to enrol their children in Community Based Childcare Centers (CBCCs) saying early childhood development (ECD) is significant in building strong foundation for Malawi’s future.

 Addressing parents and guardians at Chindamba, Traditional Authority Chowe in Mangochi, during her familiarization tour on Tuesday, Daudi called for stakeholders' combined efforts in promoting welfare of children, stressing that investing in early childhood education was crucial for children’s growth.

Daudi said she was impressed with community members and Chindamba CBCC caregivers’ active role in providing early child education.

The Deputy Minister added that it was encouraging to learn that children attend school regularly and actively participate in learning activities.

‘‘I came here to Mangochi to appreciate how the district fare in terms of early childhood development. I have seen that children come to learn regularly and that they are being supported by parents who contribute money to promote early childhood development.

 ‘‘We are very excited about what is happening in Mangochi where we have 15 active early childhood development centres, but we still need more of these centres. We would like to thank the World Bank for supporting with infrastructure development in early childhood development centers,’’ added Daudi.

She added that Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare is committed to improving ECD by training CBCC caregivers, saying the initiative was already taking place in phases to ensure that all caregivers are provided with necessary teaching knowledge and skills for effective ECD.

After touring communities at Chindamba, the Deputy Minister also visited participating communities in Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP), which she noted was improving livelihood of rural households in the district.

According to the Principal Social Welfare for Mangochi, Patrick Cholopi, this year, the number of households under SCTP increased from 18,000 to 28,000 households in the district.

In his remarks, Senior Chief Chowe commended government for improving ECD, saying the intervention was bearing fruits in Mangochi.