The Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication, and Social Welfare and UNICEF have launched the 2024 Early Childhood Development Report, revealing both progress and challenges in Namibia's ECD sector.

Minister Doreen Sioka advocated for ECD centres to incorporate mother-tongue instruction to enhance early learning outcomes.

The report highlighted a rise in ECD centres, improved enrolment, and access to sanitation, health, nutrition, and water.

However, the quality of education remains a major concern.

Only 17% of educators possess ECD qualifications, which compromises children's learning and developmental outcomes.

Furthermore, the child-to-educator ratio in many centres exceeds the policy-recommended maximum of one to 25, which calls for urgent expansion of training programmes to enhance educator capacity.

The Minister of Gender Equality, Doreen Sioka, emphasised that teaching children their local languages strengthens learning and addresses language barriers.

While enrolment is on the rise, there is a concerning dropout rate, with hunger identified as a significant factor. The report reveals that the country's centres enrolled 53,076 children, ages zero to four, in 2024.

It has also been revealed that fewer than 15% of the 3,866 centres provide meals, putting many children under the age of six at risk of malnutrition and increasing the likelihood of early school dropout.