Creating Opportunity for Parents and Children

In every country across the world, child care is both a necessity and a barrier to employment for most families. In the Oldeani region of Tanzania, where the average annual income falls below $300, the need for both parents to have the freedom to pursue economic opportunity is even greater.

Cognizant of the strain that child care can place on families, six years ago, when a new mother teaching at Gyetighi Primary School had to split her attention between her new child and the classroom, the Tanzanian Children’s Fund (TCF) saw an opportunity to support teachers and their families by offering free daycare for their children.

By offering early childhood education classes at the Rift Valley Children’s Village (RVCV) we not only enabled parents to continue their careers, but provided their children with the countless benefits that come with jump-starting their education.

Our volunteers make this opportunity possible, as they lead classes and oversee playtime for children ranging in age from 2 to 9 years old. Along with basic child care, they provide children with a unique exposure to English, allowing many to become fluent before they even begin their education at Gyetighi Primary School. 

Additionally, we saw that students who had access to RVCV’s early childhood education program were arriving at Gyetighi Primary School having already developed many of the skills children need in order to be successful inside the classroom, such as socialization, cooperation, concentration, and confidence. 

After witnessing the positive impact of our daycare services, this past year we took the program one step further by opening it to the children of all 120 staff members employed at RVCV. 

By providing daycare to more and more kids in our community, we are not only allowing parents to continue to pursue economic opportunity, but building brighter futures for their children.