A few months before the XX Ibero –American Summit of Chiefs of State and Government to be held December 3 and 4 in Mar del Plata Argentina, ALAS, The Organization of Ibero – American States, and the Spanish Bank BBVA, together with Latin American experts, Colombian government authorities and organizations from civil society and the private sector, established the joint and coordinated participation of all these sectors in the fulfillment of the 2021 Goals and its Early Childhood component, as a priority for the achievement of social inclusion through education.

The 1^st Early Childhood Seminar “Cultural and Social Contexts in Early Childhood: Minorities, Government and Civil Society” took place today in Bogotá, Colombia, in a multisectorial effort from ALAS, as a civil society organization, the Organization of Ibero – American States, as an International Organization, and BBVA, as a private sector organization. The Seminar developed under this multisectorial focus, where, Juan Antonio Pungiluppi, Executive Director of ALAS, spoke about the history of the foundation and its efforts to mobilize the different sectors of society in favor of early childhood, highlighted the efforts and contributions of BBVA for the realization of the Seminar, and invited more private sector companies to join this alliance to promote the care and attention of children from 0 to 6 years old in the region. Oscar Cabrera Izquierdo, president of BBVA in Colombia, reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to support Colombia’s childhood through their Corporate Social Responsibility programs.

“We are here because we have a collective commitment with early childhood, and we are sensitive to their needs”, acclaimed Alvaro Marchesi, Secretary General of the Organization of Ibero-American States.  Marchesi emphasized in the need to focus in 2 main strategies: obtain the commitment of all the sectors with early childhood and have a collective project gathered in Educational Goals 2021.  Elvira Forero, Director of the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare qualified the Seminar as the perfect scenario to demonstrate that childhood is the best example of how different spheres of society can work together to accomplish sustainable development. Colombia’s former Minister of Foreign Relations and CEO of Fundación Pies Descalzos, María Emma Mejía, added that the idea is to invite the governments to risk more capital in budgets directed to education, understanding this as the fundamental key for development and social equality.

After this opening remarks, the first panel of discussion titled “Innovative Strategies in Early Childhood”, moderated by Alicia Marin, Deputy Director of ALAS, started with the intervention of Patricia Sarlé, Director of the Masters in Early Childhood of the University of Buenos Aires, who treated the topic of playing, games and esthetics from an academic standpoint as providers of entertainment, discipline and key components for the cognitive development of the children. On the other hand, Nathalia Mesa, Director of Fundación Carulla and its Early Childhood Program aeiotu, presented he topic of early childhood education in contexts of vulnerability with public-private cooperation, which innovation lies in creating teams that work hand by hand to expand and coverage and quality. Mesa affirmed that it is necessary that more actors join to benefit early childhood in a better and more cost-effective way.  In representation of the government, María Mercedes Liévano, Director of Early Childhood of the Ministry of Education, presented the Comprehensive Early Childhood Policy, launched by the Colombian government in 2007.

The second panel of discussion, titled “Social and Cultural Contexts in Early Childhood”, initiated with presentation of Luis Secco, advisor in economic policy for ALAS, who stressed on the importance of investing in this sector of the population given the countless benefits that it brings to society, such as the promotion of economic development, the promotion of peace within the community and the nation, the promotion of social equality and the reduction of political instability. This presentation was followed by Martha Liliana Huertas, Director of Prevention of the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare; Moisés Medrano, Director of Populations of Colombia’s Ministry of Culture, who exposed about the need to attend minorities; and the Peruvian expert in indigenous topics Luis Lopez. This panel of discussion set the need of integrality in actions directed to early childhood addressing minorities under their cultural and social context.

Colombia’s Minister of Education, Cecilia María Velez White, closed the event highlighting the efforts of Colombia’s government and its openness to generate alliances to benefit early childhood, such as the one represented by this Seminar. “This is one of the most important topics, that has no reverse, not only because of the scientific importance it has been given, but also because we have been able to palpate  the results  in basic and middle education because of the basis that have been set since early childhood”. She thanked ALAS stating that it “has not only being accompanying us, but also prioritizing the topic in the public agenda of the Ibero – American governments, which contributes to generate a greater movement within the sector”, concluded.

This way, the 1st Early Childhood Seminar concluded, an association between ALAS, the Organization of Ibero – American States, and the Spanish Bank BBVA, as a prelude to the XX Ibero – American Summit, to be held December 3 and 4 in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

ALAS invites you to watch the State of the Planet 2010 Conference, where experts and world leaders will talk about key topics for the future development of our planet. You can watch the live webcast this coming Thursday, March 25 at http://www.stateoftheplanet.org/

The State of the Planet conference, held every two years, brings together insights on critical issues from the world’s most influential thinkers and leaders. This year, the Earth Institute, The Economist and Ericsson join forces to bring the conversation to the global community. With broadband access enabled by Ericsson, live events in five cities will be brought together in real time, moderated by Economist journalists. Viewers at home can participate via interactive online tools and discussion boards.

Four major topics are on the table: the science and politics of climate change; healing the world economy in an environmentally sustainable way; the ongoing challenge of ending extreme poverty; and how we can build and strengthen international systems able to deal with continuing crises that span borders.

 Speakers include: 

-          UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon

-          President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa of Mexico

-          Prince Albert II of Monaco

-          Sanjeev Chadha, CEO of Pepsico India

-          Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme

-          Xu Jintao, head of theenvironmental economics program, Peking University

Moderator: Al Jazeera journalist Riz Khan.

Hosts of the event are:

-          Earth Institute director Jeffrey D. Sachs

-          Ericsson president and CEO Hans Vestberg

-          Matthew Bishop, American business editor and New York bureau chief of The Economist.

The Special Meeting of the OAS Permanent Council and the Permanent Executive Committee of the Inter – American Council for integral Development on the importance of investing in early childhood for the development of the region is taking place today Under the title “Investing in early childhood: a sure strategy for combating poverty and for promoting social development and equity”.

The meeting, hat started at 10:00 am. And will go on until 1.00 pm, is divided in three panels in which top experts will expose about Why invest in early Childhood and the Promotion of Social Development and Equity.

The purpose of the Inter-American Program on Comprehensive Attention to Early Childhood is to consolidate and make further headway on fulfilling the Hemispheric Commitment to Early Childhood Education adopted in 2007 and ratified by the Ministers of Education of the Americas in August 2009.  The program works to promote the activities, projects and technical assistance that the OAS, UNICEF and the Bernard Van Leer Foundation are sponsoring, heading up and executing within the hemisphere, in partnership with government institutions, civil society and businesses.

Early childhood is a critical phase in the life of every human being, and the investment made in quality comprehensive care in this decisive phase of life is an opportunity to conquer or mitigate some of the major challenges that the OAS member states face:  chronic poverty, inequality, an elevated school dropout rate, nagging unemployment, crime and social violence.  Affording all the children in our countries a good start is one of the keys to shaping and developing human beings capable of living together in society as affective, cognitive, communicative and creative individuals.   A veritable chorus of economists, scientists, physicians and policy-makers have concluded that the investment in attention to early childhood is perhaps the most important that a society can make to induce the most positive social and economic results.  The research also finds that to be effective, the attention administered in early childhood must be of good quality and comprehensive; in other words, it must involve a variety of strategically articulated services in areas like nutrition, health, education, welfare, labor measures, etc., all in order to actually achieve an optimum, equitable impact.  This kind of comprehensive attention requires discerning public policy, which in turn demands enormous political commitment, especially in times of economic crisis and political change.

The early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean, founded by ALAS and the earth Institute at Columbia University, is represented by Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the EI and cofounder of the Secretariat, who will be approaching the audience of ambassadors and Latin American delegations to the OAS about the importance of investing in early childhood for the social and economical development of the region. Maria Estela Ortiz, Vice president of the Board of Chilean Kindergartens and Chile’s delegate for the Secretariat, will speak about how to promote social equity and development since early childhood development.

Watch the complete livestream in http://www.oas.org/en/media_center/webcast.asp?lang=ORI

Artist and activist Shakira and World Bank President Robert Zoellick announce “The Early Childhood Initiative: An Investment for Life” in Latin America and the Caribbean

ALAS Foundation’s activist and founding member Shakira and World Bank President Robert Zoellick today launched a groundbreaking $US 300 million joint initiative aimed at expanding development programs for young children in Latin America and the Caribbean.

“This initiative seeks to mobilize opinion, policies, and resources in the region, as a cost-effective way to fight inequality and improve opportunities for its citizens,” said President Zoellick during a signing ceremony of the partnership agreement between Shakira’s ALAS Foundation, Columbia University’s Earth Institute, and the World Bank, held at the Bank’s Washington, D.C. headquarters. 

Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs provide children with adequate nutrition, healthcare, and stimulating environments from the moment of conception through age 6—a period of development crucial for achieving a child’s full potential. The initiative will help expand ECD programs in a region where 9 million children under 5 suffer from chronic malnutrition and 22 million lack access to early basic care.

 “If we want to build a better world, we have to give children the chance to improve their lives, no matter where they are born or how difficult their circumstances.  By giving every child a fair start in life, we are improving our collective future,” Shakira told the an audience of 100 VIPs, including Latin American and Caribbean ambassadors and officials from the education sector, along with  representatives from other international organizations. 

“We look forward to working closely with ALAS and the Earth Institute in the months and years to come as we move this important agenda forward. ALAS—Shakira in particular—have made an enormous contribution toward placing young children at the heart of the public policy discourse in Latin America,” said Zoellick.

Zoellick and Shakira explained that ECD programs are among the most effective—and cost-effective—development inverventions. Children who participate in ECD programs demonstrate improved health and academic outcomes, while showing higher productivity and income in later years. Conversely, delays in early childhood interventions are difficult and costly to reverse later in life, as the Bank’s recent publication The Promise for Early Childhood Development in Latin America illustrates. 

Citing Haiti’s emergency response as a timely example of working with partners, Zoellick said that ECD initiatives will play a critical role in Haiti’s reconstruction, where attention will be placed on rebuilding not only the country’s infrastructure, but also the potential of its people. He stressed the importance of partnering with organizations including UNICEF, UNESCO, and the World Food Program to provide urgent relief to the Haitian children and mitigate the long-term impact of the January 12 earthquake on a generation of young Haitians. 

One of the initiative’s first programs will be a partnership with Mexico’s state agency CONAFE to provide training for parents and caregivers to improve their competencies and practices in caring for children 0-4.  The initiative will focus on the poorest 172 municipalities in Mexico, located primarily in its southern states.  

In addition to providing loans and grants to participating countries, the initiative will work with the ECD Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean, a project of ALAS, the Earth Institute, and the governments of Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Panama, Paraguay and Argentina, to develop best practices and identify promising pilot projects for children under 6.  This work will be presented at the UN’s Millennium Development Goals Summit in September and the XX Ibero-American Summit of the regional Heads of State in November in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

Over the last 20 years, the World Bank has been helping governments from over 50 countries invest in ECD. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the Bank has financed more than 30 projects, totaling over US$1billion. At present, private and public investments range from less than 1 percent to roughly 12 percent of the total educational expenditures of countries in the region, according to World Bank estimates.

ALAS Foundation’s founder and activist Shakira met with President Obama and at the White House today to discuss their shared interest in early childhood development and universal education.

“It was such a privilege to sit down with the President in the Oval Office to discuss our shared commitment to education and early childhood development. We agreed that investing in our children is the smartest strategy governments can use to boost economic growth, fight poverty, and promote global security and peace,” said Shakira. “We will be working closely with the President and his staff to implement his vision—for Latinos, children in the United States, and around the world.”

“I briefed the President on the progress made this year through ALAS with the heads of state of Latin American governments, and explained that we have made early childhood development a central topic of discussion during the next Ibero-American Summit to take place in Argentina later this year.”

Shakira and President Obama first met at his inaugural ceremonies last January. 

Before the meeting with President Obama, Shakira met with members of his staff where she inquired about the status of government policies to legalize 11 million undocumented immigrants who live in the United States. White House officials told Shakira that they are working hard to find a solution, and said they hope to reach an agreement this year with the Republican Party to legalize the undocumented immigrants.

 Shakira also met with a group of the President’s advisors on education, national security, and social innovation. Members of both Obama’s and Shakira’s teams agreed to convene again next week to advance specific ideas to develop early childhood development programs among the Hispanic community in the United States.

 The Colombian artist is a leading activist for children and the founder of ALAS, a coalition of Latin American artists and business leaders advocating for comprehensive ECD programs. She’s on her way to the World Bank to announce a groundbreaking $300 million initiative with World Bank President Robert Zoellick aimed at expanding development programs for young children in Latin America and the Caribbean.

 Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs provide children with adequate nutrition, healthcare, and stimulating environments from the moment of conception through age 6—a period of development crucial for achieving a child’s full potential. The initiative will help expand ECD programs in a region where 9 million children under 5 suffer from chronic malnutrition and 22 million lack access to early basic care.

Internationally-renowned artist and founder of the ALAS Foundation Shakira Mebarak and World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick will launch a groundbreaking new venture, “The Early Childhood Initiative: An Investment for Life,” on Monday, February 22, 2010 at 1:00 pm at the World Bank headquarters in Washington, DC.

The Early Childhood Initiative will provide US$300 million in new funding and technical support to help countries create Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs in Latin America and the Caribbean. The initiative, together with the ECD Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean, will present new policy options to the Millennium Development Goals Summit 2010 (scheduled for September) and the XX Ibero-American Summit, which will take place in Argentina later this year.

“The Early Childhood Initiative” aims to mobilize policymakers and decision makers to scale up implementation of Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs in Latin America and the Caribbean by improving the capacity of countries to design ECD policy frameworks, deliver comprehensive quality services to their citizens and increase financing for these programs, as a cost effective way to increase social mobility, fight inequality and improve human capital in the region.

Join us in the webcast live of the event at 1:00 pm. EST through www.alasthemovement.org

The World Bank launched today ThePromise of Early Childhood Development in Latin America and the Caribbean, a book by the Bank’s Senior Education Economist Emiliana Vegas and Lucrecia Santibañez that provides the tools to close the gaps in the knowledge about the Early Childhood Development (ECD) efforts in the region through an overview of selected cases in the region and providing the lessons related to their design, implementation and institutionalization.

The authors reviewed a total of eleven programs from Chile, Colombia, Honduras, México and Peru, from which only Chile and Colombia have comprehensive ECD policies. They list the impact that ECD interventions have in the future of children such as cognitive and socio- emotional development, the probability of continuing in school and reduced participation in risky behaviors, among other impacts.

Vegas and Santibañez conclude that in Latin America and the Caribbean it is especially important to invest in ECD to reduce initial disadvantages and maximize all children’s potential.

ALAS congratulates the authors and the World Bank for providing this systematic perspective of ECD in the region, what is known and how to move forward with it.

To download the synopses of the book please access:

http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTLAC/Resources/ECDPromise.pdf

Haiti, considered the poorest country in the continent, faces today one of its biggest challenges after the great devastation caused by an earthquake that destroyed most of its infrastructure and left hundreds of thousands of casualties. This is, without question, a tragedy without precedents for a nation where 80% of its population lives in extreme poverty, and where the index of infant mortality is the highest in the hemisphere: 76 for every thousand births.

During emergencies like this children are always the most vulnerable. As our partners of Save the Children reported, families whose homes were damaged or destroyed were forced into the open, leaving children vulnerable and at increased risk of disease. They are without security and comfort of possessions, daily routines and contact with friends. For their well being and recovery, it is imperative that they return to a normal routine as soon as possible. It is imperative that we all contribute to make this happen!

May this catastrophe help raise awareness among governments, organizations and individuals about the tough reality Haiti has been facing throughout its history of poverty and misery and to contribute to its recovery and development; to contribute to better opportunities for the future of the children of Haiti.

ALAS expresses its solidarity to the people of Haiti who need our help more than ever. For information about how to help, access the following links:

Yele

www.yele.org

UNICEF

https://secure.unicefusa.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6680&6680.donation=form1

http://www.unicef.org/spanish/index.php

Save the Children

https://secure.savethechildren.org/01/web_e_haiti_earthquake_10?source=sp_dnbutton_pg

World Food Program

https://es.wfp.org/donate/ayuda-a-haiti

American Red Cross

https://american.redcross.org/site/Donation2?4306.donation=form1&idb=520717783&df_id=4306&s_subsrc=RCO_NewsArticle

Red Cross International

http://www.icrc.org/web/spa/sitespa0.nsf/html/helpicrc

Panamerican Development Foundation

http://www.panamericanrelief.org/

Doctors without Borders

https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org

Panama’s government, through the office of the First Lady and the Secretary of Social Development, sealed the alliance between governmental entities, the private sector and civil society for the implementation of early childhood public policies in the country. This Alliance, also known as the Early Childhood national Council, will work for the education, health and nutrition of children between 0 and 6 years old, and will favor the joint work of public and private institutions that currently support early childhood, in order to align common goals and avoid duplicity of actions.

ALAS congratulates the government of Panama for undertaking this important initiative that constitutes a significant advance in the goal of accomplishing universal coverage of programs for children younger than 6 years old.

For more information on the launch of the national Council please enter

http://www.presidencia.gob.pa/noticia-presidente-numero-774.html

During the presentation of the ECD Report, ALAS received the support of the President of Argentina, Cristina Fernández, who will chair the XX Iberoamerican Summit in 2010, to include Early Childhood Development in the Agenda of this diplomatic event. In a press conference that took place today, November 30^th, in the frame of the XIX Iberoamerican Summit of Chiefs of State and Government, the President accepted Shakira’s petition to contribute to change the history and destiny of the children of the region, by setting the topic of children between 0 and 6 and the one of early education as the core topic of her forthcoming Summit.

“Early education is to human life what a foundation is to a building; if the foundations are not built strong enough, we will be always repairing it. This is how for decades the Governments in Latin America have been spending billions, rather than investing, repairing and finding temporary solutions to foundation problems. Why not invest since now in the foundation of our future: our children in their first 6 years of life, which is when their brain and basic functions develop”, declared the Colombian singer who is founder and activist of ALAS together with fellow Latin American artists such as Alejandro Sanz and Fernando Olvera from the Mexican group Maná, among others.

The press conference was the scenario in which the Regional Alliance for Early Childhood Development was presented, and where the Presidents of Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Panama and Argentina joined Shakira and Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, in the search of ways that lead to the universal coverage of education, nutrition, and attention to health for children between 0 and 6 years old. The ECD Report was presented as the first product of this alliance and as a first step to accomplish this goal as it is an overview of the state of early childhood in the region.

 The Mexican President Felipe Calderón ratified his country’s support to ALAS Foundation and assured, modifying a Mexican popular saying that “Every child should come with a medical insurance under his arm”. By the other hand, Álvaro Uribe, President of Colombia, spoke about his country’s efforts towards early childhood through the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare (ICBF for its acronym in Spanish) and the Community Mothers Program.

 The President of Chile Michelle Bachelet concluded by saying, “I am convinced that investing in our children is fundamental from the ethical, social, and even economical point of view. Every resource invested in our children is what will allow us to make a difference”.

In front of an audience of international media, ALAS and the Secretary general of Iberoamerican Secretariat, Enrique Iglesias, sign the agreement to promote the early childhood component of the program “Educational Goals 2021: the Education we want for the Generation of the Bicentenaries”, which seeks to achieve universal coverage in education by 2021.

This way, Early Childhood Development gained prominence among the Latin American Presidents, and constitutes a promise for the region’s human, social and economical development.

The President of Chile Michelle Bachelet and Colombian pop star Shakira, founder and activist of Fundación ALAS, met for more than 30 minutes in the frame of the XIX Iberoamerican Summit of Chiefs of State and Government. After the meeting they spoke to the international press about their constructive dialogue, which seeks to prioritize social investment for children between 0 and 6 years old from the Latin American nations.

“We had a working meeting were we discussed the necessities of childhood. We know that by providing children with health, nutrition, education and proper conditions, we’ll have healthier and happier young people and adults” said the Chilean dignitary. Shakira praised the model implemented by Bachelet by stating that it is “nowadays an important example to follow given that they have the highest indicators of investment in early childhood”.

The President highlighted the importance that this topic is included in the agenda of this Summit, and in the one of next year’s in Argentina, where the discussion will go around education, by stating that “this would be the core theme to celebrate the bicentenary”.

This meeting of a Chief of State and a representative from Fundación ALAS opens new positive perspectives for the integration of policies focused on the improvement of the quality of life of the millions of children that make part of the population in risk in Latin America. “Children between 0 and 6 years old are the most vulnerable population, and in Latin America there are 35 million that don’t receive any protection from the government”, assured the Colombian singer. “We are here to seal an alliance for early childhood”, she added. As Bachelet stated by quoting Chilean poet Gabriela Mistral, “the future of our children is today”.

On November 29 and 30^th the topic of Early Childhood Development will take Estoril with the presence of Colombian star Shakira, founder and activist of Fundación ALAS, and Jeffrey Sachs, Economist and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, to present in the frame of the 2009 Iberoamerican Summit the Regional Alliance for the universal coverage of nutrition, education and health for children between 0 and 6 years old.

This coming Sunday, November 29, Shakira will meet with Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet, who leads the implementation of comprehensive policies for early Childhood, and is a key member of the Early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean, founde by ALAS and the Earth Institute at Columbia University. Other bilateral meetings will also take place with Latin American dignitaries to promote the urgency of achieving universal coverage in health, nutrition and education for children between 0 and 6 years old.  

Shakira and Sachs will present the Regional Alliance for Early Childhood Development with the President of Colombia, Alvaro Uribe, and the President of Panama, Ricardo Martinelli, in a press conference that will take place Monday, November 30^th at 1:45 pm in the Hotel Miragem, Room 1.The ECD Report will be presented as the first product of this unique and innovative initiative for the region’s Early Childhood. 

ALAS and The Earth Institute at Columbia University Start a Regional Alliance for Early Childhood

For the first time in the History of Latin America, the most important experts in early childhood from international organizations such as the World Bank, The Interamerican Development Bank, The Organization of American States, UNICEF, the World Food Program and the Pan American Health Organization, among others, and delegates from Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Panama and Paraguay, join efforts to design the basis of a hemispheric alliance in favor of the region’s early childhood.

ALAS and the Earth Institute at Columbia University summoned this panel of experts in a same discussion table in the first meeting of the Advisory Board of the Early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean. “This meeting is the seed to develop a regional agreement that seeks to protect our children during the first stages of their life and places Early Childhood Development (ECD) as a priority in the development policies agenda of the governments of the region”, stated Alejandro Santo Domingo, President of ALAS Board of Directors, during his opening speech. “Early Childhood Development is the core power to reach the Millennium Development Goals, which is why it is a topic of interest for all the Latin American and world leaders”, said Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. “I commit to do anything I can to promote this initiative from my position as Special Advisor to the United Nations Secretary General”, he added.

“This is a unique opportunity for Latin America to emerge in the center stage of the international development dialogue as it constitutes the perfect scenery where the political will, visibility, expertise and innovation join”, expressed Julio Frenk, Dean of Harvard School of Public Health and Chair of the Advisory Board, when he addressed the panel. “We, as experts, are always trying to persuade artists and public figures to adopt and promote our causes. As you can see, this is a unique case in which they, through ALAS, came to use asking to fill with content this regional alliance for early childhood”, explained Mexico’s former Secretary of Health.

The Board also discussed the need for the region to adopt the goal of reaching a universal coverage in Early Childhood Development as the most effective strategy to accelerate social and economic development. It has been scientifically proven that that there is no more effective policy than ECD to break the chains of poverty. This is why ALAS hopes that this alliance will help position this topic in the core of the public agenda. From today on this team will work in a joint document that will have the contribution from each international organization and from the delegates assigned by each president. A first version of the document is expected to be ready to be presented to the Latin American governments at the next Iberoamerican Summit of Presidents to be celebrated this November in Estoril, Portugal.

The Early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean is an initiative of ALAS and The Earth Institute at Columbia University to promote research and policies that help strategize and implement integrated programs for early childhood in the region.

ALAS and the Earth Institute at Columbia University summoned the most important international media and Latin American opinion leaders in a luncheon briefing for journalists, in New York City, to officially present the Early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean.  Alejandro Santo Domingo, President of ALAS, Jeffrey Sachs, Director of The Earth Institute at Columbia University, and Antonio de la Rua, Vice-president of ALAS, spoke with journalists about the importance of this regional project that seeks to promote research and policy to help strategize and implement effective comprehensive Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs in Latin America.  

Alejandro Santo Domingo, entrepreneur and President of ALAS’ Board of Directors, pointed out the importance of investing in early childhood development as he stated that “small investments in early education will bring great improvements to labor productivity and economic growth in the Latin American region”. These investments should have an integrated focus, in which an infant’s intellectual stimulation should be complemented by an adequate nutrition and health attention.

“We want to commit the Latin American Presidents to this at the next Iberoamerican Summit”, stated Jeffrey Sachs, who is also Special Advisor to the United Nations’ Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, and who leads the Secretariat’s group of experts in the production of a regional programmatic proposal. “A good start has a lifetime return, while a start with the lack of a proper nutrition, health attention and stimulation can have lifetime consequences”, he added. According to this important economist, the goal is that by 2020 all Latin American children from zero to six year old should enjoy of a comprehensive coverage in education, nutrition and health.

In order to accomplish this, ALAS and The Earth Institute at Columbia University, through the Early Childhood Development Secretariat for Latin America and the Caribbean, are committed to take specific recommendations and proposals to the next Iberoamerican Summit of Presidents this coming November in Portugal. They will expose the importance of implementing ECD policies, the costs, how can it be done and the management structures.

This commitment was ratified by Shakira, founder and activist of ALAS, who assured in her intervention by conference call that despite the discouraging statistics that show that 9 million Latin American children suffer of hunger and that 22 million don’t have access to any type of early stimulation, “ALAS is optimistic because there are ways of ending this, and one way is by investing; investing in education, investing in a collective future”. “We want all the Presidents of Latin America to take commitment to action. Action is what we need, what our children need”, she stated.

This constituted the launch of a unique initiative that gathers top specialists, members of the most important international agencies and government representatives to work in a regional project that, as mentioned by Shakira, “will change the destiny of those children that live in poverty, and with it, the story of our Latin America”.

For more than three years now, as part of the effort, Chile has been building new preschools at the astounding rate of 2.5 a day, increasing the country’s total from 781 to 4,300. It has also significantly boosted health coverage and nutrition programs for kids. Ortiz, who heads Chile’s National Early Education Board, calls it all a vital investment in the country’s future that’s especially important during the current economic crisis, when more parents are forced to work and fewer have money for school.

Chile, which happens to be led by a pediatrician who’s also a single mother and a committed socialist, is a particularly dramatic example of a growing trend throughout Latin America and beyond: as countries grapple with the economic downturn and reconsider spending, more and more are heeding the advice of a coalition of economists, scientists, and experts who argue that the best way to strengthen a society and increase development is to improve health, education, and other services for its youngest citizens.

The trend’s most prominent spokesperson is probably Shakira, the Colombian pop singer who is also a founder of a group known as ALAS. This coalition (its name comes from an acronym for “Latin America in Solidarity Action,” but also means “wings” in Spanish) has brought together Latino businesspeople, artists and celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez and Gabriel García Márquez to help end poverty in the Western hemisphere by ensuring that all kids under 6 have access to health care, education, and proper nutrition. Last year, ALAS convinced the Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim and Howard Buffett (the philanthropist son of Warren Buffett) to pledge $185 million for early related programs in Latin America, and the group has organized huge concerts throughout the region to raise awareness.

To read the complete article: http://www.newsweek.com/id/209963

During the celebration of Cartier’s LoveDay, the prestigious boutique joins ALAS in its effort to mobilize Latin American society towards the implementation of early childhood development public policies by donating 10% of all the sales of the LOVE collection from the boutiques in Buenos Aires, Bogotá, Panamá, Guayaquil and Puerto Rico to Operation Smile. Operation Smile is a nonprofit organization that with its voluntary medical network improves the lives and social integration of children with facial deformities such as cleft lips and cleft palates. This initiative is celebrated in an event at the Cartier Boutique in Ciudad de Panama with the participation of Stanley Motta, member of ALAS Board, Juan Antonio Pungiluppi, ALAS Executive Director, Christophe Maincourt from Cartier, and Beth Marshall and Arlene Arias from Operation Smile. This union is just another effort where ALAS and the private sector join to benefit the region’s early childhood.

Álvaro Uribe, President of Colombia, and the National Secretary of Education, Cecilia María Vélez, presented April 22nd the Educational Policy for Early Childhood, Under an Integrated Attention, with the purpose of guaranteeing the right to an early education with quality to children younger than five, especially for those that belong to poor and vulnerable families, as well as generating strategies that encourage their permanence and continuity in the educational system.

“We are convinced that this policy will allow the country to offer better development opportunities for all since the first years of life, and to contribute to the construction of an equal and inclusive society”, stated the Secretary of Education during her speech. The President, after reassuring all the political willingness in the coverage of integrated education to early childhood, recognized that the government is aware that the “attention to the mother during her pregnancy and the early attention to the child is the first step that has to be taken in order to eradicate factors of exclusion and to be able to build equality in the right moment”.

 With this policy the government expects that by 2010, 60 new centers with early childhood integrated attention will start working, and that 400.000 new children younger than five will have access to early education under an integrated attention. 

 ALAS applauds the Colombian government on this initiative, and feels deeply identified with its efforts to work for the interests of the country’s population younger than six.

During the Summit of Secretaries of Education from Latin America and the Caribbean, organized by the Organization of American States last April in Lisbon, the educational authorities established the objective to provide education to more than half of the children from the region between the ages of three and six for 2015, and to all of them (100%) by 2021. They also agreed that by 2015 between 10% and 30% of the children younger than three should participate in educational activities, and that by 2021, between 20% and 50% should be receiving education. Today, there are more than 55 million kids younger than five in Latin America and the Caribbean, from which 22 million don’t have access to education and health care.

The plan for early childhood, which is framed under the educational goals for 2021, promotes early childhood development by articulating nutrition, disease prevention, immunization and psychomotor development policies with school education. Malnutrition affects 9 million children younger than six, and its consequences are directly related with learning disabilities.

ALAS applauds this important initiative, in the frame of its strategy to promote Early Childhood Development in Latin America and the Caribbean through with the Early Childhood Interamerican Program, in association with The Earth Institute at Columbia University and the Iberoamerican Secretary. In this Program ALAS will gather top experts with countries’ educational authorities to present an Early Childhood Education Plan at the next Ibearoamerican Summit in Estoril, Portugal.

Gobota, Colombia – next week october 13th the EDUCATION MINISTER OF COLOMBIA, ANTIOQUIA GOVERNOR, MEDELLIN MAYOR OFFICE, ICBF Family Institute of Colombia, UNICEF, Iberoamerican States Organization and EXITO FOUNDATION open to the general public the IX INTERNATIONAL FORUM ON EARLY EDUCATION

READ MORE

Hello Magazine. October 7th 2008