COVID-19 Pandemic and Early Childhood Care: Assessing the Impact on Children Enrolled with Sangini Bal Sewa Centres
53 Pages Posted: 27 Dec 2021
Date Written: December 11, 2021
Abstract
While mothers across the world struggled with the sudden closure of institutional childcare facilities due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown called thereafter, its impact on children, especially those below the age of 6, remained comparatively unknown.
The present study aims to fill this gap to an extent, by attempting to ascertain the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown on children below the age of six who belong to poor and marginalised households.
The study specifically focuses on children who have been attending the BalSEWA centres run by SEWA in Ahmedabad, Gujarat through their Sangini Co-operative and aims to highlight the benefits that a full-day childcare centre can have not only for children in terms of holistic growth and development but also for heir mothers and the larger community, if it is nurtured with the sense of 'being there for each other'.
Keywords: Early Childhood Care, Childcare Facility, BalSEWA Centre
JEL Classification: J13, J18
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation