Tanoto Foundation and UNICEF Launch Indonesia’s First Childhood Development Measurement Tool

Tanoto Foundation, an independent family philanthropy organisation founded by Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto in 1981, grants Rp. 2.8 billion to UNICEF for the measurement and monitoring of young children’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive development in Indonesia.

 Jakarta, 4 March 2020: The Government of Indonesia is committed to early childhood development and to achieve  Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4.2, namely:‘By 2030, all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education’.

In their support of efforts to achieve this goal, the Tanoto Foundation has granted Rp. 2.8 billion to UNICEF to adapt a global  tool, specifically for the needs of Indonesian children, to measure and monitor young children’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive development. As an independent philanthropy organization focusing on education,the  Tanoto Foundation believes that this initiative will complement the government’s efforts in providing data on early childhood development to monitor the achievement of the SDGs.

With this grant, UNICEF will develop the adapted version of Early Childhood Development Instrument (ECDI) and Caregiver Reported Early Development Index (CREDI) measurement instruments for Indonesia.  These tools will provide population-based data on the development status of children aged 0-3 and 3-5 years. UNICEF will test and validate the results of the adapted version which can then be utilized by the country’s Central Statistical Bureau (BPS) for the 2020 National Economic and Social Survey (SUSENAS).

“Intervention on young children is the key to develop Indonesian human resources and it has become one of our focus areas. Measurement and monitoring are important as we work with evidence-based principle. I am looking forward to the partnership with UNICEF to develop this measurement method that can then become a contribution to the nation,”

J Satrijo Tanudjojo, Global CEO of the Tanoto Foundation.

Echoing these sentiments, Debora Comini, UNICEF Indonesia Representative notes that

“Investing in children to help them reach their full potential is critical, but to give every child the best start in life, we need to have the right data. That is why the Tanoto Foundation and UNICEF are joining forces to develop this important tool that will help us measure and monitor early childhood development in Indonesia. Partnerships like this are essential as we work together to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.”

Debora Comini, UNICEF Indonesia Representative