Zanzibar rallies support for early childhood

ZANZIBAR: ZANZIBAR has called on development partners, the private sector and other stakeholders to turn their commitments to children’s welfare into coordinated investments and measurable action under a new five-year Early Childhood Development (ECD) Programme.

The appeal came as the government of Zanzibar launched the Zanzibar Multisectoral Early Childhood Development Programme (ZMECDP) 2026–2031 and adopted the Zanzibar Declaration on Investing in Early Years during a partners’ roundtable held on July 22.

Zanzibar Second Vice President Hemed Suleiman Abdulla, who represented President Dr Hussein Mwinyi at the event held recently, said the launch should mark the beginning of concrete implementation rather than remain a symbolic milestone.

“Today must not be remembered only as a successful discussion. It must be remembered as the moment when we strengthened our collective resolve to act,” he said.

He urged development partners, United Nations agencies, philanthropic organisations, civil society, academia, communities and private-sector institutions to align their expertise and resources with the programme.

“I invite every partner to translate today’s dialogue into concrete collaboration, coordinated investments and measurable actions that will improve the lives of children and families across Zanzibar,” he said.

The programme provides a national framework for coordinating investments in children’s health, nutrition, responsive caregiving, early learning, safety and protection.

Opening the partners’ roundtable, Minister of State in the President’s Office, Dr Saada Mkuya Salum, described the programme as a major milestone in Zanzibar’s development.

“Investment in early childhood is the foundation of sustainable human capital development and national prosperity,” she said.

Dr Saada said the programme will strengthen collaboration among government institutions and development partners to ensure every child receives the nurturing care needed to survive, thrive, learn and realise their full potential.

She said the roundtable was designed as a working session, allowing participating institutions to identify the technical, financial and institutional support they could provide for implementation.

Commitments made during the meeting will inform a coordinated implementation and investment roadmap aligned with national priorities and measurable results.

Under the Zanzibar Declaration on Investing in Early Years, the government and stakeholders pledged to strengthen the programme as the national platform for policy leadership, planning, coordination, implementation and accountability.

They also committed to increasing domestic investment, exploring innovative financing mechanisms and coordinating developmentpartner support to ensure sustainable, predictable and equitable financing for early childhood development.

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The declaration further prioritises expanding access to services under the five pillars of the Nurturing Care Framework, good health, adequate nutrition, responsive caregiving, opportunities for early learning, and safety and security while strengthening research, data systems, innovation, monitoring and evaluation.

The government and its partners also agreed to establish an annual review mechanism to assess progress and track implementation of commitments.

In his closing message, Mr Abdulla expressed gratitude to development partners for supporting Zanzibar’s early childhood agenda and called for stronger collaboration.

“Let this round table mark the beginning of an even stronger alliance, one that invests in the earliest years because we know that the future of Zanzibar depends on the children we nurture today,” he said.