In Brazil the project exists in two communities, our main community Rocinha in the city of Rio de Janeiro and Jardim Catarina which is a comparison community in the city of São Gonçalo both in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Both of them suffer from severe poverty.

The South African partner community is Vrygrond, 20 kilometers from Cape Town central. Vrygrond or ‘free ground’, was one of the first informal settlements in South Africa. The Overcome Heights section still lacks municipal infrastructure – roads, sewage system and piped water.

Early childhood education has increasingly been recognised as a societal priority. We know from research that children can be seriously disadvantaged when they – and their communities – face such factors as discrimination, violence, and poverty. We also know the value that focusing on early childhood and early childhood education can bring to addressing such disadvantages. We can support young children themselves, their parents and other kin and early years practitioners, resulting in improved respect for young children’s human rights, improved gender equality and inclusion, and better outcomes for both individuals and communities.