This conference will bring together policymakers, World Bank Group staff and international experts from across East and Southern Africa to discuss the challenges and opportunities surrounding empowering childcare in East and Southern Africa.

Discussions will highlight how investments in childcare can deliver benefits for children, families, businesses, and economies, while also helping more women participate in the labor market. The event will explore policy and program approaches, financing options, workforce development, quality assurance systems, and public-private partnerships that can support the expansion of affordable, quality childcare services.

Childcare is closely linked to the jobs agenda. Expanding access to affordable, reliable childcare can help remove one of the key barriers preventing many women from entering, remaining in, or advancing in the workforce. In that sense, childcare is not only a social investment; it is an economic one. It can support higher labor force participation, strengthen productivity, and help countries make better use of their human capital—an important part of turning growth into more and better jobs.

At the same time, the childcare sector itself can generate employment opportunities through the development of a trained childcare workforce and related service delivery systems. As countries across Africa seek to create more inclusive pathways to jobs, especially for women and young people, childcare can play a foundational role by supporting families today while enabling stronger economic participation and job creation over time.

South Africa has emerged as an important example of policy innovation in this area. The 2021 Early Childhood Development Census recorded 42,420 ECD programs, reaching approximately 2 million children aged 0–5. South Africa provides broad financial support through targeted subsidies for childcare services and leverages a strong public-private partnership model.