The four “noteworthy practices” presented here, selected from 24 applications from throughout Asia and the Pacific, in many ways are among the best examples of early childhood care and development (ECCD) programmes in the region. Taken together, they avoid the characteristics of many current ECCD programmes – mono-sectoral, centralized, overly academic and formal – and are based on the increasingly global understanding that good quality ECCD programmes not only cover children in the age range of 0-8 but also are multisectoral and integrated, comprehensive, community-based, and child- and familyfocused.

They also demonstrate how these kinds of programmes are most likely to have both immediate and lasting impact on a child’s health, behavior, and learning. They are therefore essential reading for ECCD policymakers, programmers, and practitioners.