Early Childhood Development Programme

This ECD programme seeks to involve parents and health care providers in efforts to protect and sustain children through the provision of information and capacity building experiences. For instance,

• Resource centres for parent education were established in the primary health care "polyclinics" in four regions of Georgia, including rural areas. The centres are equipped with computers, photocopy machines, videos, and television sets to enable showing a 3-part film commissioned specially for this programme. The strategy here involves reaching out to mothers, in particular, about childhood development at the age of 0-3, which is primarily related to the child's health; hence, the organisers hold, information must primarily be provided by healthcare professionals. Further, "polyclinics are the place most frequently visited by children of this age together with their parents."
• 250 primary health and pre-school specialists were trained to provide information and counselling to 10,000 parents. "Interestingly, workshops in Telavi and Zestafoni were attended also by people who came without any formal invitation, to hear all the new and useful information they found important for them to know."
• An information package was prepared for parents that includes printed materials such as a textbook This Amazing Early Age.
• Televised weekly 50-minute ECD programmes, titled "First Step", aired on one of the popular TV channels - Imedi TV - from September 2004 through April 2005. The aim of the Saturday morning programmes was to provide information, challenge stereotypes, and introduce correct methods of child upbringing. The programme format was meant to encourage broad and active involvement; video materials presented in the programmes, either in the form of a film or questions from the public, were designed to stimulate participants (especially those from outside the capitol) to engage in active discussion. Topics explored included nutrition (and breastfeeding), hygiene, immunisation, cognitive and psychological development (including play), discipline, and self-consciousness. The programmes consisted of 3 parts:
  1. Introduction of the programme topic and invited guests, experts, and audience - which included the children, their parents and other caregivers. After the introduction, part of the film/video footage on the topic of the given programme was aired.
  2. During the second part, the invited experts discussed ECD issues.
  3. In the third part, the invited experts answered questions from telephone calls, video questions, or the studio audience.

Early Childhood Development.

Reflecting on the "First Step" TV programme developed as part of the initiative, Tamar Manjavidze, Head of Mother and Child Health Department at the Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs, said, "Already at the second TV broadcast, the number of questions went up from 10 to 30. People were asking of so many different things they were interested to know that we hardly managed to answer all of them. Initially the programme spanned 40 minutes, but then it was decided to make it 55 minutes long. By the time the third programme went on air, its rating among the TV audience was as high as that of 'Courier' news programme. It seems that for parents with young children, the programme provided the best chance to get the information they needed."

Focus group participants in an evaluation carried out by the Tbilisi, Georgia-based Marketing Communications in 2005 confirmed these positive impressions of "First Step". Young mothers, in particular, reported that it was useful for increasing their awareness of child rearing issues, as well as for challenging entrenched stereotypes and introducing new methods of child care. Evaluators concluded that "Existence of this program should be prolonged as it has positive social influence."

Another government official indicates that "The Ministry, its Mother and Child Health Department receive many letters of appreciation whose authors request to expand the programme to other regions of Georgia. It is important to know that the media component provided for dissemination of information about the programme not only throughout Georgia, but far beyond. The Ministry considers it important to replicate the successful model, introduced in pilot regions, throughout the country, which would contribute to educating professionals on issues of early childhood development on the one hand, and raising the public awareness, on the other."