Celebrating fathers in the field of ECCE |10 July 2023

The group of fathers in a souvenir photo with some membres of the IECD board

A group of fathers who are working in the field of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) have been recognised for their devotion and commitment to working with young children.

The fathers are working as either a childminder, assistant childminder or prospective childminder.

The recognition event held at the Ministry of Education hall at Mont Fleuri was part of the IECD’s 10-year anniversary campaign coinciding with Father’s Day in June.

To hand over the token of appreciation to the group of fathers was the chairperson of the Institute of Early Childhood Development (IECD) board, Captain David Savy.

Other attendees on the day were the vice-chairperson of the IECD board, Sonia Mancienne, management, staff and partners of IECD.

“The role of male/father figures in the early years of our children’s lives must not be underestimated. These are vital years of their lives and we must at all cost give them the right beginning. I commend each and every one of you for your zeal to work with our children,” Capt. Savy said to the group during the ceremony.

According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the ECCE staff remain overwhelmingly female in virtually every region and country. This is strikingly true for Seychelles where the ECCE field is predominantly occupied by women. It is hoped that such initiatives will encourage a larger participation of the male population to ensure there is greater gender-balance among the workforce.

Contributed