IFPRI conducted an in-person survey between OctoberNovember 2023, which included an assessment of early childhood education and quality of care, including the short form of the Caregiver Reported Early Development Instrument (CREDI). CREDI provides ECD indicators derived from caregiver interviews, in order to assess the overall development of children under three years old. The purpose of the CREDI short form used in this study is to deliver population-level monitoring on global advancements in reducing ECD-related inequalities and achieving target 4.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Key Findings - Read the Report
- Support for learning: 79 percent of children received four or more stimulating activities, but only 20 percent had three or more books; fathers’ engagement with children (30 percent) lags behind mothers (81 percent).
- Caregiver Reported Early Development Instruments (CREDI): the standardized score in the study sample was 58.4, which is lower than scores reported in similar studies from India (70.0), Tanzania (64.0), and Armenia (81.8)
- Household inequalities: Asset-rich, food-secure households show higher ECD scores; severe food insecurity lowers scores by ~2 points.
- Conflict and shocks: Migration and physical insecurity reduce ECD scores by 0.5-1.0 points.
- Parental influences: Fathers’ education boosts ECD outcomes; maternal depression and low aspirations for girls reduce ECD outcomes.
- Care quality: Inadequate care reduces ECD scores by 1.3 points; stunting lowers ECD scores by 0.8 points, while access to books and ECE increases ECD scores by 0.7 points.
The evidence from this study highlights the urgent need for comprehensive, multi-sectoral strategies to improve early childhood development (ECD) in Myanmar. Several key findings carry important policy implications.
First, compared to the 2015–16 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) findings for Yangon, a higher proportion of children in this survey had support for learning (78.9 vs. 51.8 percent), access to children’s books (20.7 vs. 5.3 percent), and availability of playthings (85.5 vs. 82.6 percent). Despite these gains, fathers’ involvement in learning activities (30 percent) continues to lag far behind mothers’ (81 percent).
Second, the mean Caregiver Reported Early Development Instruments (CREDI) population standardized scores observed in the sample was 58.4, which is somewhat lower than scores reported for children of similar ages in other country studies.
Third, household wealth and food security are critical drivers of developmental outcomes. Children in severely food-insecure households scored nearly 2 points lower than their food-secure peers, a gap equivalent to several months of developmental progress.
Fourth, conflict and displacement undermine developmental progress. Children from households affected by migration or physical insecurity exhibited measurable developmental penalties.
Fifth, parental and caregiver characteristics matter greatly. Fathers’ education is a strong predictor of child development outcomes, suggesting that policies should actively promote paternal engagement in early learning. Maternal depression is strongly associated with lower child development, highlighting the need to expand community-based mental health services and integrate maternal well-being into ECD programming. In addition, low educational aspirations for girls translate into poorer developmental investments, underscoring the importance of shifting gender norms around education.
In summary, policymakers should prioritize integrated approaches that simultaneously address food insecurity, poverty, maternal mental health, and gender equity, while investing in early learning environments and father engagement. Such holistic strategies are essential to ensure that all children in Myanmar can reach their full developmental potential, even amid ongoing conflict and economic hardship.