In a rapidly changing world, establishing strong foundations for children is vital for their well-being and resilience. Quality education is central to this endeavour and is the key to lifelong health and success. Recognizing that children thrive in the classroom when they are in good health, it is crucial to learn about health and well-being…

The UNICEF Vision for Early Childhood Development is guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and supports the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It outlines UNICEF's intent to support an organization-wide approach to child development in the early years of life, drawing on its mandate for child rights, multisectoral expertise,…

The call to transform education must begin with the youngest children. The world is not on track in meeting Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 4.2 committing countries to ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education by 2030. There is solid scientific evidence that early…

The Sustainable Development Goals highlight the critical importance of pre-primary education and set the broad ambition that by 2030 all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education. Today, the world is facing a learning crisis: While millions of…

UNICEF's first global report on pre-primary education presents a comprehensive analysis of the status of early childhood education worldwide. It also outlines a set of practical recommendations for governments and partners to make quality pre-primary education universal and routine. Noting that at least 175 million children -- 50 per cent of the…

In a rapidly changing world, establishing strong foundations for children is vital for their well-being and resilience. Quality education is central to this endeavour and is the key to lifelong health and success. Recognizing that children thrive in the classroom when they are in good health, it is crucial to learn about health and well-being…

This is the Executive Summary for "The State of the World's Children 2024: The Future of Childhood in a Changing World," which looks ahead to the year 2050. It asks: How can we best secure a future where the rights of every child are realized -- a world where all children survive, thrive and meet their full potential? This report…

This advocacy brief summarizes the key findings from "A World Ready to Learn: Prioritizing Quality Early Childhood Education. Global Report" and its call to action for governments, donors, and partners to invest in pre-primary education. This brief addresses three of the toughest questions ministries of education and finance are likely…

The burden of mental health conditions and poor psychosocial wellbeing among children and adolescents is associated with significant lifetime costs, as mental health conditions is associated with learning lower educational attainment and impeding the development of socioemotional skills which translates into reduced earning potential and labor…

"The Global Framework on Transferable Skills" has been developed to support UNICEF in delivering on the results of its "Strategic Plan 2018-2021" and "Every Child Learns: UNICEF Education Strategy 2019-2030," and provides a shared vision of work on skills development across UNICEF. The Framework guides UNICEF country…

"Growing Steady and Strong: Early Childhood Development Regional Guidance in East Asia and the Pacific" was developed against the backdrop of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis to support the country offices of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in implementing the early childhood development (ECD) agenda as a key pillar…

Young people face particular disadvantage finding employment, compared to older workers. This includes a lack of labour market and job-search information and experience, as well as a mismatch between youth aspirations and labour market realities, with limited job led growth. The purpose of this paper is to provide guidance on how the United…

What does the future hold for the world's children? In many ways, the future is now. Today's actions and decisions will determine the future children inherit. Unfortunately, today's children live in a world fraught with crises, poverty and discrimination. Where far too many are deprived of opportunities to meet their full potential. We can and…

This Statistical Compendium to the report "The State of the World's Children 2024: The Future of Childhood in a Changing World," offers vital statistics on child survival, development, and protection worldwide, supporting UNICEF's commitment to tracking progress toward global goals for children's and women's rights. It includes the…

The global effort to achieve sanitation and water for all by 2030 is extending beyond the household to include institutional settings, such as schools, healthcare facilities and workplaces. This has been reinforced by global education for all strategies highlighting how water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in schools improves access to education…