Nigieria: Education can be improved in high population countries, says Unesco

There is room for improvement in early childhood care and education in the world's nine high population countries, according to UNESCO's latest Policy Brief on Early Childhood. Favourable demographic trends means that there are fewer children to serve and if the countries' investment in early childhood remains constant, more can be spent on improving quality, says Soo-Hyang Choi of UNESCO. Early childhood care and education was the topic chosen for the 5th E-9 Ministerial Review Meeting, held in Cairo, Egypt, in December 2003. The Policy Brief represents some highlights of progress achieved in ECCE access in the nine countries - Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan.