Policy-Relevant Research
Turning Community Experience into Evidence for Better Decisions
At NECCS Initiative, we believe that effective early childhood policy must be informed by the realities families and childcare providers experience every day.
Our Policy-Relevant Research work generates, documents and translates evidence about childcare, early childhood development, nutrition and the experiences of families and providers in underserved communities.
Why community-based research?
Many childcare challenges are interconnected.
Families may struggle with affordability. Caregivers may lack training and resources. Women may find it difficult to remain economically active without reliable childcare. Cultural expectations can influence caregiving practices. At the same time, policymakers may have limited data about what is happening within informal and community-based childcare settings.
Our research seeks to make these realities visible.
Areas of interest
Our research and evidence-generation work focuses on issues including:
1. Access, affordability and quality of childcare.
2. Responsive caregiving.
3. Cultural influences on childcare practices.
4. Early childhood development in low-income communities.
5. Women's economic participation and childcare.
6. Community-based and informal childcare systems.
7. Nutrition and early childhood wellbeing.
8. Inclusion and children with additional needs.
9. Childcare workforce development.
10. Regulation, quality assurance and professionalisation.
11. Financing and sustainable models for childcare.
Our work has included research examining how cultural norms influence responsive childcare practices in selected low-income urban communities in Alimosho LGA, alongside investigation of the socioeconomic factors and support systems that shape childcare choices.
From evidence to action
We do not conduct research simply to produce reports.
We seek to translate evidence into:
Better programmes → Better practice → Better policy → Better outcomes for children and families.
Our research also draws on the experiences of childcare providers themselves. For example, provider assessments have highlighted financing, infrastructure, training and regulatory compliance as continuing challenges, while also identifying practical quality standards such as trained caregivers, first aid, safe facilities, structured routines and handwashing facilities.
Our goal
We want community voices and locally generated evidence to have a stronger place in conversations about Nigeria's early childhood systems.
Explore our research and evidence →