Early Learning Partnership

The Early Learning Partnership (ELP) is a multi-donor trust fund, housed at the World Bank.  ELP leverages World Bank strengths—a global presence, access to policymakers and strong technical analysis—to improve early learning opportunities and outcomes for young children around the world.

We help World Bank teams and countries get the information they need to make the case to invest in Early Childhood Development (ECD), design effective policies and deliver impactful programs. At the country level, ELP grants provide teams with resources for early seed investments that can generate large financial commitments through World Bank finance and government resources. At the global level, ELP research and special initiatives work to fill knowledge gaps, build capacity and generate public goods. We have three main streams of work:

1. Catalytic Country Grants: Our approach at the country level is simple. We invite World Bank staff and governments to apply for funding and through this competitive process, we respond to specific country needs and opportunities, stimulate creativity and ensure that funding goes where it can be used most effectively. ELP has committed more than $15.3 million to more than 119 grants in 63 countries in Africa and South Asia. These grants have generated more than $4.13 billion in new and improved finance to support ECD through development finance and have reached at least 31.2 million children and 28.7 million parents.
2. High-Value Analytical Work: Our ambitious work program addresses a range of topics, including: scaling up ECD measurement; engaging the nonstate sector; investing in early learning to build future skills; quality early learning; investing in childcare to build human capital; early learning systems research; and supporting process and impact evaluations to help countries ensure quality and get to scale.
3. Capacity Building: Recognizing capacity limitations, and the need to build better demand, skills and knowledge, we have launched several activities to build capacity, share knowledge and increase demand within the World Bank and client countries. Our flagship programs include The Early Years Fellowship and Engaging Policymakers in Early Childhood.

Click on the interactive ‘ELP Grant Investments (Bar Graph)’ to examine the scale of ELP’s catalytic country grant impact at the regional and global practice levels and click on the interactive ‘ELP Footprint (Map)’ to see a summary of the country level work financed by ELP highlighting four specific work programs: catalytic country grants, Early Years Fellows, Engaging Policymakers in Early Childhood and Early Systems Research.

Read more about The Early Learning Partnership

• The Early Learning Partnership: Annual Report 2020 [PDF] (2020): provides an update on the work funded by the Early Learning Partnership (ELP) team in 2020.
• The Early Learning Partnership: Annual Report 2019 [PDF] (2019): provides an update on the work funded by the Early Learning Partnership (ELP) team in 2019.
• How do ELP Investments Generate Big Returns for Young Children? ELP Note Series [PDF] (September 2016): showcases how initial ELP investments in client countries catalyze significantly increased funding for early childhood from World Bank resources, client governments, and other donors.
• How Do We Calculate the Amount of Funds Leveraged? ELP Note Series [PDF] (September 2016): provides key information on the amount of funds leveraged in each client country as a result of ELP initial funding.