Implementing childcare interventions - what works and how can it be scaled up? - Kehinde Ajayi Aziz Dao Estelle Koussoubé Rebekka Grun Florence ...

Implementing childcare interventions - what works
and how can it be scaled up?

Kehinde Ajayi       Rebekka Grun
Aziz Dao            Florence Kantiono
Estelle Koussoubé   Gilberte Kedote

Motivation

Burkina Faso Mobile Creches

Burkina Faso Mobile Creches

• Urban public works (PW) project
   – 85% of applicants female
   – Lower take-up among mothers
   – Children brought to work sites
   – Informal childcare arrangements
   – Six-month minimum wage employment

• Challenges
   – Unsafe for children
   – Distraction for mothers

Key features

Mobile creches

• Full coverage tents or existing safe spaces
• Nutritious meals
• Stimulating curriculum using trained providers (PW participants)
• Low-cost toys and learning materials
• Parental education on childcare and nutrition
• Support visits from education and health specialists
• Capacity for 50 children aged 0 to 6

Design phase

• Ministry of Women, National Solidarity, Family and Humanitarian
  Action (education for 0 to 2 year olds)

• Ministry of National Education, Literacy and Promotion of National
  Languages (education for 3 to 6 year olds)

• Qualitative research with public works participants

• Consultation with regional ECD experts

• Pilot in one commune

Impact Evaluation Design

                     Public works sites with
                       potential to host a
                             creche
                               36 sites

          Public works +                 Public works +
       parental education +            parental education
          mobile creche
               18 sites                        18 sites

      Survey random sample           Survey random sample
      of female participants         of female participants
           with a child

Impact Evaluation Timeline

July 2019               Feb 2020
  public                 public
  works                  works
   start    Nov 2019      end      Mar 2020    Nov 2020
             creches                creches     creches
              open                 close due    reopen
                                   to COVID

            Nov 2019                                      Feb 2021
             Baseline                                     Follow up
            in-person                                      phone
              survey                                       survey

Results

• 3x increased use of childcare centers

• Why do or don’t women use them ?

• Policy recommendations

Use of childcare centers (past 12 months)

                            Treated   Control
                                                37.2

       24.8

                                                            12.6

                     0.6

       used mobile creche                       used any creche

Reported reasons for using ANY creche

               good quality

      to have time to work

sensitization about benefits

                  proximity
                                                                                Treated
        good infrastructure                                                     Control

   learning and awakening

               affordability

                      other
                               0.00   0.10   0.20   0.30   0.40   0.50   0.60

Reported reasons for not using ANY creche

      affordability

    breastfeeding

primary school age
                                                                                     Treated
           too far                                                                   Control

  have a caregiver

             other

                      0.00   0.10   0.20   0.30   0.40   0.50   0.60   0.70   0.80

Predictors of use

• Two main factors predict use of ANY creche

   – Number of economically active adults

   – Formal education of mother or household head

• None of these factors predict the use of mobile creches

Recommended improvements for mobile creches

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

 0
      free cost   hygeine       staff        no change   infrastructure longer hours   security   other
                            qualifications                    and
                                                           equipment

Lessons

• Access to mobile creches increased use of childcare
  centers

• Childcare quality most common reason for using creches

• Cost most common reason for not using them

• Further potential to reach additional households

Ongoing analysis -- long-term impacts

• use of creches 12 months later

• women’s earnings and economic empowerment

• child development

Further Reading

• Africa Gender Innovation Lab
   – http://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/africa-gender-
     innovation-lab

• Burkina Faso Mobile Creches
   – https://cfi.co/magazine/cfi-co-winter-2018-2019-world-bank-on-
     social-protection-in-africa/
   – https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/04/mobile-childcare-
     lets-women-work-burkina-faso/

• Contact: kajayi@worldbank.org

Scalability and sustainability

•    Cost: USD 833 each per month (USD 16,658 for 20 creches)

•    Salaries for 200 BAMs (10 per creche): 37,000 CFA per BAM =>
     7,400,000 CFA per month (USD 12,500; USD 62.50 each)

•    4 (weekly) supervision visits by education specialists (fuel and
     communication) => 300,000 CFA per month (USD 510)

•    2 (fortnightly) supervision visits by health workers => 300,000 CFA per
     month (USD 255)

•    Daily snack for children (150 CFA/day with 50% paid by parents): 2000
     CFA per child per month => 2,000,000 CFA per month (USD 3,393)