Learning Brief – Breakthrough thinking for early learning in South Africa: Government is starting to adopt the home-based learning model

The early years of a child’s life are the building blocks of their future success. Yet in South Africa, over 1.15 million children aged three to five are not in any early learning programme (ELP) and fewer than half of four-to five-year-olds attending an ELP are developmentally on track, meaning that they do not meet the expected learning standards for their age. The quality of an ELP is a significant determining factor in whether children reach developmental milestones. SmartStart – an early learning social franchise with a national footprint – aims to reach one million children aged three to five every year by 2030.