Globally, during the COVID-19 pandemic there have been disruptions to initiatives, services, and programmes that promote and protect nurturing care for young children. While necessary to reduce transmission of SARS-CoV-2, strategies such as complete or partial lockdown, physical distancing measures, and school and childcare closures, have made it increasingly difficult to reach children and caregivers. At the same time, the social and economic ramifications of the pandemic have put families in even greater need of parenting and family support. In response to the COVID-19 crisis, many organizations have adapted both content and delivery of existing programmes to continue to reach and meet the needs of families during this difficult time.
In this webinar the speakers (see below) discussed the implementation experiences and emerging lessons of COVID-19 response strategies of seven programmes that prioritize nurturing care and early childhood development in their work. Findings of this work are drawn from a recent qualitative case study report, carried out by FHI 360 with support from the LEGO Foundation and in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the LEGO Foundation.
Speakers
- Gemma Tumelty — Director of Playful Parenting, LEGO Foundation
- Dr. Kristy Hackett — FHI 360 Consultant on the Qualitative Case Study; Faculty Member, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
- Guendalina Curi — Sociologist, Social Worker and Project Manager, Associazione 21 Luglio (Italy)
- Dr. Roopa Srinivasan — Director, Developmental Pediatrics & Health Clinical Services, Ummeed Child Development Center (India)
- Carmen Paterson-Payne — Provincial Coordinator, Nobody’s Perfect Parenting Programme (Canada)
- Dr. Nathalie Charpak — Founder and Director, Fundación Canguro de Colombia (Kangaroo Foundation)
- Ghada Abu Alrous — Early Childhood Development Coordinator, International Rescue Committee - Ahlan Simsim programme (Jordan)
- Dr. Liane Peña Alampay — Parenting for Lifelong Health (MaPa programme), Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines)
- Svetlana Karuskina-Drivdale — Senior Regional ECD Specialist, PATH (Mozambique)
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