Afrika Tikkun's Early Childhood Development Program provides vulnerable children and orphans from birth until age 6 with quality care and preschool education integrated with family support, health and improved nutrition.The program's holistic approach has a broad impact: these children are more likely to attend school and become adults with higher income, better health, lower crime rates, and lower levels of welfare dependence than their peers who do not receive early development support.
South Africa is a highly unequal society. It is a middle income country, yet approximately 40% of young children in South Africa grow up in conditions of abject poverty and neglect. Children raised in poor families are most at risk for infant death, stunted growth, poor adjustment to school, increased drop-out rates and to end up in crime. Children in the townships can only access vital ECD services through community based organisation like ours.
Afrika Tikkun invests in ECD because the protection and development of children not only safeguards their own well-being but is also the best guarantee of future peace, security and prosperity. The program offers quality care and preschool education to the most vulnerable children in the 5 communities where we operate. Taking into consideration the socio-economic conditions under which the targeted children live, the program is integrated with family support, primary health care and nutrition.
Children who participate in well conceived Early Childhood Development programs like Afrika Tikkun's tend to be more successful later in school, are more competent socially and emotionally, and show higher verbal and intellectual development than children who are not enrolled in high quality programs. Ensuring healthy child development, therefore, is an investment in a country's future workforce and capacity to thrive economically and as a society.
