GCIS
President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially opened the doors to the newly constructed Little Flower Early Childhood Development Centre at Nkantolo in the Eastern Cape.
In a speech prepared for delivery at the opening, President Ramaphosa said early childhood development is a comprehensive approach to the development of a child from birth to seven years of age.
"It aims to protect the rights of children to develop their full cognitive, emotional, social, and physical potential.
Ramaphosa said there are many children in South Africa who are not thriving because they begin life at a disadvantage.
He said this was the case in many villages in the Eastern Cape, in the Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Local Municipality, and around the country.
The President said that Treasury has allocated R1.4 billion in this financial year to expand ECD services.
The National Treasury has allocated an amount of just over R1.2 billion as a conditional grant in this financial year to expand ECD services.
"This aims to increase the number of children accessing ECD services by subsidising children from indigent families," he said.
