Today's Edition
MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
The Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority (ECA) is developing the "Thriving Child Index", a first-of-its-kind comprehensive framework aimed at measuring child wellbeing across multiple sectors.
The announcement was made during the third edition of ECA's Abu Dhabi Child Data Symposium, which convened experts and government officials under the theme "Harnessing Child Data to Shape Scalable Societal Change".
Traditionally, child wellbeing is assessed through sector-specific perspectives - health organisations focus on medical wellbeing, education bodies on learning outcomes, and social services on family support.
The Thriving Child Index seeks to unify these perspectives into a holistic measurement system, ensuring that child wellbeing is not evaluated through a single metric but rather incorporates various aspects of a child's development and overall quality of life, according to the Abu Dhabi ECA.
A Collaborative Effort for Holistic Child Wellbeing
The ECA will work alongside key government agencies and international experts to shape the framework.
Speaking on the initiative, Her Excellency Sana bint Mohamed Suhail, Minister of Family and Director General of the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority, emphasised the importance of data in early childhood development.
"At ECA, our vision was and still is that every young child can flourish to their full potential in a safe and family-friendly environment. One of the first things we did was prioritise the collection and harnessing of data from our partners, connecting the dots to introduce the necessary interventions to give children the best start in life," she said.
"The Thriving Child Index, the first of its kind in the world, will help us achieve that, and we look forward to working closely with partners and experts to ensure our young children are thriving."
Abu Dhabi: A Model Early Childhood Development
In an interview with Aletihad, Saleha Al Azri, Director of Data, Research & Innovation at the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority, said that the Child Data Symposium aims to bring experts together to drive targeted interventions based on evidence and data.
The symposium featured keynotes and discussions with both local and international experts, including Tamim Al Kuttab, Member of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Chairman of the Department of Government Enablement; Qassim Al Hashemi, Executive Director of Beneficiaries Affairs at the Abu Dhabi Social Support Authority; and Dr. Friederike Schüür, Chief of Data Strategy & Governance at UNICEF, among others.
Abu Dhabi prioritises early childhood development as a strategic investment in the nation's future, according to Al Azri.
"Today's children are our future workforce, leaders, teachers, engineers and even astronauts. By investing in their wellbeing during these formative years, we are directly investing in the growth and prosperity of our nation," she said.
In an interview with Aletihad, Jonathan Rothwell, Principal Economist at Gallup, noted that Abu Dhabi's data-driven approach to early childhood development is a model for other nations to follow.
"In terms of the effort put into measuring child wellbeing and understanding its underlying causes, I have not seen any government take such comprehensive steps. Abu Dhabi is bringing together data from multiple sectors and adopting a holistic approach to address the needs of young children. This data-driven strategy sets a new standard for using information to shape policies that enhance child well-being."
The Abu Dhabi Child Data Symposium is part of the ECA's World Early Childhood Development (WED) Movement, an initiative which brings together global experts, partners, and disruptors for innovation to advance Early Childhood Development in Abu Dhabi and beyond.
Friederike Schüür, Chief of Data Strategy and Data Governance at the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), said that UNICEF has been working with the Abu Dhabi government on responsible data for children since 2022.
She said the Thriving Child Index stands out for its focus on comprehensive data systems and responsible governance.
"One of the things that's so exciting about the Thriving Child Index is that it really focuses on the whole child and what contributes to the well-being of the whole child. It will facilitate conversations about how we can actually measure that concept and what kind of data we can use to ultimately compute and re-compute that index over time," said Schuur.
