President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on the private sector to increase investment in early childhood development (ECD), saying quality early learning can help address inequality, support working families and strengthen South Africa’s future workforce.
In his weekly newsletter to the nation on Monday, the President said businesses could help expand access to early learning by subsidising fees, upgrading facilities and funding training for practitioners who care for and educate young children.
“Corporate support, whether in the form of subsidising fees, upgrading facilities or funding practitioner training, will help us to achieve our early learning goals,” President Ramaphosa said.
He noted that while many companies include education in their Environmental, Social and Governance strategies, much of this investment is directed at basic education rather than early learning.
The President said strengthening ECD is not only an investment in children’s education, but also in the broader economy and the livelihoods of families and practitioners.
“Early learning is a vital part of our care economy. These programmes do more than sustain the livelihoods of the people, mostly women, who run them. They also free parents and caregivers in communities where employment opportunities are often scarce to work, study or simply to provide for their families,” he said.
Addressing inequality
President Ramaphosa said access to early learning remains unequal, with more than 1.3 million children aged between three and five not enrolled in any early learning programme.
He said children from poorer communities were particularly affected, as their families often struggled to afford fees at early childhood development centres.
In contrast, children from better-resourced communities were more likely to enter the foundation phase with the literacy and numeracy skills needed to progress at school.
“Expanding access to early learning is therefore a development priority and a way of addressing historical inequalities. Every child, regardless of the circumstances of their birth, deserves the chance to learn and grow.”
The President said quality early learning helped children develop essential skills, including recognising letters and numbers, building vocabulary, counting and solving simple problems.
These foundations prepare children to read, write and work with numbers from their first year of formal schooling.
Expanding access
Government has increased investment in early learning over the past two years, including raising subsidies for children attending ECD programmes and committing additional resources to expand access.
“Through these efforts, we aim to reach an additional 300,000 children by 2027 and a further 900,000 by 2030,” President Ramaphosa said.
The Bana Pele Mass Registration Drive has also helped thousands of previously unregistered early learning programmes begin the process of formal registration, enabling government to build a clearer picture of the sector and identify where support is needed.
President Ramaphosa acknowledged the role of ECD practitioners, many of whom are women who have established small enterprises to provide care and learning opportunities for children in their communities.
He recalled visiting an early learning centre in Bizana in the Eastern Cape, where staff continued caring for children despite not being paid.
The practitioners told him they would not turn away a child because their family could not afford the already low fees.
The President said their dedication highlighted the need to support and recognise those working in the sector.
Investment in the country’s future
President Ramaphosa said early childhood development had benefits extending beyond education, touching on healthcare, social protection, employment and economic growth.
He said supporting early learning could help parents and caregivers participate in the economy while laying the groundwork for stronger schools and a more capable workforce.
“I have often said that we are starting late in building a formalised early childhood development system. Yet starting late should not mean starting slowly. The reforms we have embarked upon in early learning are part of a broader effort to renew South Africa’s socio-economic architecture,” he said.
The President emphasised that investment must be accompanied by effective delivery to ensure resources reach the communities and programmes that need them most.
“But investment alone is not enough. Public resources must reach the programmes and communities where they are needed most,” he said.
Earlier on Monday, the President delivered the keynote address at the 2026 Bana Pele Leadership Summit in Sandton, where he called for accelerated reforms in ECD, urging government, businesses and communities to work together to ensure every child in South Africa has access to quality early learning by 2030.
READ | President Ramaphosa calls for accelerated ECD reform
“A child cannot be prepared for the future unless that child is given a strong foundation in the present,” President Ramaphosa said at the Summit. –SAnews.gov.za
Source: Original report at SAnews.gov.za.
