Nurturing Care and Men’s Engagement
Men caregivers play an important role in providing children nurturing care. Yet, often even when they want to be more involved, they are left out of the equation in policies, services and in communities. This thematic brief summarizes the evidence regarding the benefits of men’s engagement on outcomes for women, children, and even men themselves. It consolidates the learnings thus far regarding designing and adapting services to engage men in providing nurturing care. Finally, it recommends practical actions for policymakers and programme designers across four enabling environments: policies, services, communities and caregivers – all illustrated with case studies. It focuses particularly on what health services can do, while also covering education, social protection and other sectors.
Parenting interventions to promote early child development in the first three years of life: A global systematic review and meta-analysis
Parents are the primary caregivers of young children. Responsive parent–child relationships and parental support for learning during the earliest years of life are crucial for promoting early child development (ECD). We conducted a global systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of parenting interventions on ECD and parenting outcomes.
A Systematic Review of Parenting Programmes for Young Children in Low and Middle Income Countries
This research paper provides an extensive and rigorous systematic review of ECD parenting programmes conducted in LMIC, addressing the knowledge gap and providing evidence for better programming for children and families.
Review and Analysis of Lessons Learned from Existing Positive Parenting Programmes in East Asia and the Pacific
This Review and analysis of lessons learned from existing positive parenting programmes in East Asia and the Pacific (‘The Review’) builds upon momentum generated through UNICEF’s June 2016 Regional Conference on Parenting Support Interventions for Violence Prevention and its call for an analysis of learning with regards to the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation and scale-up of existing parenting support interventions in the region. The purpose of this Review is to provide guidance to key stakeholders at national level who are engaged in or responsible for promoting parenting interventions as they plan, design
Promoting Positive Parenting: Lessons from Programmes in East Asia and the Pacific – Case Studies
Working in coordination with UNICEF EAPRO and country offices, Maestral International conducted a review of parenting programmes in East Asia and the Pacific. The overall goal was to examine the landscape and typology of existing parenting programmes and provide guidance on the design, implementation and scale up of effective parenting programmes with a focus on those reducing harsh child rearing practices and creating an enabling environment for nurturing care, services, and policies for children and their families. In carrying out this objective, a team of Maestral consultants conducted field visits to observe programmes in
Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Timor Leste and Viet Nam. Key informant interviews and desk reviews of programme in the Philippines and Papua New Guinea were also conducted.
Philanthropic Funding for Parent, Caregiver, and Family Support Programs in the Global South
The evidence is clear that from the moment a child is conceived, they need their parents, caregivers, and/or families to survive, thrive, and meet their developmental potential. Earlier this year, the ECFG Parenting & Family Strengthening interest group identified the need to understand philanthropic investments that support the adults whose behaviors, skills, and well-being impact children’s development. ECFG commissioned this exercise to map foundation investments in parenting and caregiving across the Global South. This mapping explores the who, what, when, where, and how of these investments.
Regional Mapping and Scoping Report Parenting Support Interventions Middle East & North Africa Region
The overall purpose of the regional mapping and scoping exercise is to increase cross-country learning by providing a general overview of the parenting landscape in the MENA region as well as reviewing selected interventions that meet criteria associated with parenting programming effectiveness. This report summarises the findings of this exercise, highlighting examples of parenting interventions that are being implemented across the region and case studies that reflect different aspects of parenting interventions across the life cycle. In view of the Jordan-specific focus of the consultancy, a more detailed case study on Jordan’s Better Parenting Programme is also presented in this report. Specific recommendations are highlighted at the end of each section and are summarised again at the end of the report. These recommendations are intended to inform discussions on strategic objectives and key priority interventions around parenting support in the MENA region as well as concrete actions needed to support countries in their programming. This will be followed by the development of a MENA-specific Strategic Framework for Action, Road Map and Practical Guide on parenting support programming.
Family and Parenting Support Policy and Provision in a Global Context
This report examines and analyses policies and provision for family support and parenting support. The goals of tthe research are to identify relevant global trends and develop an analytical framework that can be used for future research and policy analysis. For these purposes, new evidence was gathered and existing evidence systematized and analysed. The report is based on general literature searches and evidence gathered from 33 UNICEF national offices, located in different parts of the world, and detailed case studies of nine countries (Belarus, Chile, China, Croatia, England, Jamaica, the Philippines, South Africa and Sweden). The focus was on the features and characteristics of interventions, the underlying rationales and philosophical orientations, and the factors that are driving developments.
African Regional Convening to Support Parents and Caregivers, 21-23 June 2022
The African Regional Convening of the Global Initiative to Support Parents (GISP) stimulated the interest or engagement of almost 1500 individuals from 742 unique organizations in the fields of health, education, social welfare, women’s affairs, early childhood, water and sanitation, mental health, violence prevention, innovative finance, climate, and many others. The convening united representatives across governments, civil society organizations, programme implementers, philanthropies, multilateral organizations, bilateral funders, private companies, universities, schools and daycare centres, and hospitals around the common cause of supporting parents and caregivers.
