At the close of the workshop, Constanza Alarcón provided final remarks in which she reflected on the key themes that were presented throughout the day. She began by reminding the audience of the key workshop objectives, listed below:
- Evidence of impact for effective models and their impact on public policies
- Scalability of program models, specifically, maintaining quality at scale and identifying context-related challenges
- Sustainability of programs
- Perspectives and experiences of governments in the implementation of a comprehensive national early childhood policy
Alarcón emphasized assessment as a key component to identifying effectiveness. Gathering quality information in follow-up assessment, she explained, stimulates public commitment to creating and implementing sustainable and effective public policy. Further, she argued for the importance of efficient and accurate data systems, recognizing that they need to include cross-sectoral data and different populations in order to advance the decision-making process.
With regards to the scalability of programs, Alarcón remarked that
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1 This section summarizes information presented by Constanza Alarcón, Presidency of the Republic, Colombia.
it is crucial to build on existing infrastructures and available human resources, noting that creating something new and unknown requires paying attention to variables that can affect quality. Also, she noted that pilot projects can work for a given reality, but not necessarily in all contexts. She highlighted the need to adapt models to deliver services and programs in a given place and context while at the same time paying attention to variables that can affect quality.
As for how to sustain quality as programs are scaled up, Alarcón explained that it is necessary to identify specific program goals and criteria that can be scaled up through pilots. At the same time, it is necessary to encourage staff to support high quality through training, coaching, compensation, and shared experiences. Cost-effectiveness analysis for a given reality in a given region is crucial. However, work should be done to ensure that programs can be effective in other settings as they are scaled up. Challenges faced when scaling up should be considered as well, explained Alarcón, including supporting local governments in training and financing capacity building in municipalities and defining and monitoring quality standards, among others. She emphasized the importance of building local capacity and the benefits of working with leadership in local communities to provide monitoring and oversight. Moreover, she pointed out that program scalability and effectiveness can depend on whether the beneficiaries see the added value of the programs in their lives.
Regarding governance, Alarcón emphasized the need to view early childhood development through a holistic lens, and argued that the management of comprehensive care of young children is intersectoral in nature. Intersectoral approaches with efficient central coordination are successful in addressing problems and useful for promoting policies, Alarcón noted. She encouraged meetings at the local, regional, and global levels to elicit discussion and debates and to share experiences among policy makers. This, coupled with building techniques and creating tools to facilitate the development of policies, is an effective mechanism to mobilize governments, Alarcón argued.
Finally, Alarcón echoed several speakers in highlighting that investing in young children is more than investing in education. It includes health, nutrition, and social protection, as well as the development and education of accompanying parents and caregivers. She emphasized the need for more laws and policies to support strategies and a financial commitment for investing in early childhood development, explaining that these investments need to be sustainable in order to implement stronger policies and quality programs for the future.
Closing the workshop, Eduardo Queiroz thanked the workshop presenters and participants, members of the forum, and supporters of early childhood development who have come together at a time when early childhood is at the forefront of policy in Latin America. Queiroz recognized that this event brought together people from different regions throughout Brazil, as well as many countries in Latin America, including Chile, Colombia, Honduras, Jamaica, and Uruguay. He also acknowledged the presence of supporters of early childhood from around the world, both at the workshop and online, and encouraged this community of regional and global stakeholders to participate in the upcoming forum activities.
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2 This section summarizes the closing remarks presented by Eduardo Queiroz, Fundação Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal.
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