DBSA: Why early childhood development infrastructure matters

Chuene Ramphele, Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) group executive: infrastructure delivery speaks at the Trialogue Business in Society Conference

In opening the panel discussion Building foundations: Why ECD infrastructure matters, Ramphele told audiences gathered online and at the Wanderers Club in Johannesburg that the DBSA’s interest in early childhood development infrastructure recognises the need to establish foundations for social success early. “We believe that ramping up investment in early childhood development is fundamental to building a generation that is socially empowered, economically productive and equipped to contribute meaningfully to South Africa’s future.”

He spoke to the need for a collective, collaborative partnership effort to establish an ECD infrastructure that promotes children’s growth and wellbeing. Such infrastructure includes safely constructed structures, dignified sanitation facilities, access to clean, potable water and safe energy, proper food-preparation facilities, and appropriate outdoor spaces.

The panel discussion unpacked the establishment and maintenance of ECD infrastructure, the broader value of early learning centres, and how to support these facilities.

Collective responsibility for infrastructure security

Rather than focusing solely on the scale of South Africa’s infrastructure, Ramphele recommended an attitude that values, protects and manages existing infrastructure as a pathway to progressively improving overall infrastructure.

He commented that the infrastructure neglect and decay he witnesses speak to the need to address the overlooked infrastructure value chain, particularly maintenance and human capacity. Failure to adequately maintain facilities leads to service delivery failures and the loss of services for those who need them. The responsibility for care of infrastructure is a collective one, with room in the sector for partners to contribute to human capacity building and collective servicing of infrastructure. ​

He called attention to the importance of establishing respect for infrastructure and sound governance. He added that respect for infrastructure is cultivated early, through small habits such ​ as children in ECD spaces learning to turn off taps and pick up litter. A society that takes care of what it has makes the case for greater investment.

Highlighting the need for collaborative effort between government and the private sector to ensure that infrastructure provides a continuous underlying structure for social development, Ramphele said it is the responsibility of government to create a functional and conducive space for private-sector participation. Meanwhile, private-sector efforts might rally around existing capacity and governance through institutions such as the DBSA. “That's why the power of collaboration really becomes a very important element for us and not just collaborating, but connecting in terms of our mandates and collectively beginning to ensure the functionality of this to service our nation.”

Mthombolwazi PreSchool in Mpumulanga built by the DBSA in partnership with Mama’s Alliance and TREE

Responding to an audience question about how to sustain infrastructure through community ownership and sustainable partnerships, Ramphele emphasised that the DBSA’s ECD infrastructure model prioritises establishing strong community engagement around built facilities. This includes building the necessary community governance structures, providing basic facilities management training, engaging local businesses in cooperative efforts and encouraging a sense of community ownership and contribution.

The wider influence of ECD infrastructure

Early Care Foundation CEO Ipeleng Mohlala commented that ECD centres play an important role in enabling economic activity. These community assets not only ensure that children have access to essential early learning programmes but also create employment opportunities for community members.

The Early Care Foundation partners with the DBSA to support minor infrastructure renovations at ECD facilities to meet Department of Basic Education (DBE) compliance requirements. Mohlala noted that funding infrastructure to achieve compliance requirements remains a key hurdle for many facilities. It is often treated as a box-ticking exercise rather than what it really is: creating the foundational conditions for quality early learning. “If children are in unsafe, unhealthy spaces, they are unable to thrive,” she said, adding that quality programmes, appropriate teacher to child ratios, access to water, sanitation and nutrition, among other things, are essential to education delivery.

Oppenheimer Memorial Trust CEO Tracey Webster highlighted the current opportunity to unlock funding for ECD. Referring to Treasury’s response to sector lobbying efforts to increase child subsidies, she said that everything is aligned to unlock the additional R10bn allocated to ECD. Compliant early learning programmes can access child subsidies, increasing the sustainability of the programmes, enabling the provision of nutritious food for children, improving working conditions and the delivery of quality education for children in these programmes.

Webster explained that ECD infrastructure investment is a form of catalytic funding that enables genuine systemic change. She urged the private sector to get organised and work collaboratively to ensure the new budget allocation is used effectively in ECD before it is allocated elsewhere. “The systems are in place. The research has been done. The monitoring and evaluation is there…we are not organised as the private sector, which is heartbreaking because we should be the innovators. We should be looking at leverage. We understand smart partnerships. The time is now to really catalyse this opportunity and get the job over the line.”

Achieving universal ECD access

Reinforcing Webster’s urgency, Ilifa Labantwana acting CEO, Senzo Hlophe, spoke to the immediate opportunity for the public sector to contribute to dramatically improving the nation’s ECD sector.

Ilifa Labantwana’s mission is to build a durable, sustainable legacy for generations of South African children. Hlophe explained that the challenge of overcoming barriers to access government support for ECDs is primarily one of inadequate infrastructure. The requirements are especially difficult for poor and rural centres, meaning that the children in these communities are denied access to quality ECD services.

Noting that government has worked exceptionally quickly and proactively to unlock funding for ECD, the challenge is to ensure ECDs have access to this funding. Some 15,000 such sites are currently in the system but not yet eligible for subsidies due to one or another infrastructure hurdle that needs to be overcome. The Bana Pele social compact has brought together civil society and government to establish a public digital platform to identify these ECDs and establish the support they need to qualify for government subsidies. Hlophe urged the private sector to step up and contribute to existing efforts to support ECDs to access subsidies.

In response to an audience request for clearer directives to the private sector on how to support this process, Webster encouraged companies to align their efforts behind the established plans of organisations such as DBSA, the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust, the Early Care Foundation and Ilifa Labantwana to assist early learning programmes.

Since the necessary plans, request for proposal and service providers are all in place, this might take the form of funding contributions to support these efforts. It could involve directing Mandela Day efforts toward associated activities and working together to avoid duplication. Webster noted that a coordinated effort will help early learning programmes qualify for subsidies. ​

She added that government has also made provision for a conditional infrastructure grant at provincial level, which communities can access to pay local service providers to undertake necessary maintenance. She noted that communities have a duty to ensure that allocation is being used for its intended purposes and to hold governmental accountable for its provision.

As to the ECD centres that struggle to meet compliance requirements for infrastructure support, Mohlala said that different modalities are needed to reach these children and centres. “As a sector, we need to be inclusive. We need to look at how we can broaden the scale of funding and different approaches to reach those that may not be able to comply,” she commented, adding that perhaps multistakeholder collaborations might explore these modalities to unlock funding.

ECD centres as enablers of economic inclusion

In response to an audience challenge that funding ECD infrastructure is a matter of convenience for funding and measurement rather than a response to what children and communities need, Hlophe quickly illustrated the gendered socioeconomic value of funding ECD infrastructure.

He relayed the story of his own sister, who, located in a rural area, is caught in the cycle of having to stay home to care for her four-year-old child because the only available early learning programme cannot provide a safe site for children. “Places of care are the enablers of women being able to seek livelihood opportunities,” said Hlophe. “If we invest in infrastructure, we're not just investing in building, we're actually investing in women.”

He added that the same applies to the basic education system, which provides a safe, supervised space for children to acquire education while their parents engage in economic activities. “That's why we need spaces where children can be placed. Those spaces must be safe. They must be durable. They must meet health and safety standards,” he said. ​

His comments were an opportunity to reflect on audience poll results rating the broader influence of quality ECD infrastructure.

Panellists were asked to close the discussion by reflecting on ways to increase appreciation of the less-acknowledged benefits of ECD facilities.

Mohlala agreed with the strong view that high-quality early learning programmes set children up for progressive learning and help break the cycle of intergenerational poverty. However, she called attention to the matter of ECD centres struggling to provide stable, meaningful employment in communities. She challenged the sector to identify ways to improve employment conditions for ECD workers to improve staff retention. ​

Webster reinforced the economic and health benefits of early learning centres. She cited research indicating that funding interventions targeting children under seven changes the trajectory of gross domestic product over the long term. She noted that more could be done to mobilise young people across the entire ECD value chain, for example, through food provisioning, educational toy manufacturing and other economic activities.

Hlophe said that part of what we need to invest in is working with communities to identify and build ECD spaces, shifting cultural mindsets toward appreciating and respecting the infrastructure that supports child development.

In closing, Ramphele called for stronger implementation capacity and deeper collaboration between government, civil society and the private sector, stressing that lasting developmental impact depends on collective action to strengthen the systems that support children and communities.

To watch the full video of the panel discussion, click here and to learn more about Trialogue, visit the website. ​