Fighting Inequalities From Day 1. What Role For Nutrition And Early Child Development Policies In The G20 And Beyond?

This brief looks at the implications of the cost of inaction incurred for early childhood development. Evidence suggests underinvestment worsens child and family outcomes and burdens society with costly inefficiencies. It concludes with recommendations for countries to re-balance their public expenditures by focusing new spending on the youngest children. Key findings include: e Spending by age – particularly on early childhood development – varies widely among countries, and the youngest children receive the least support. e Lack of investment in young children has a high cost for children and society. e (G20 countries should move in line with the 2018 ECD initiative and focus new spending on the youngest children to rectify imbalances in public expenditures. e Investments in policies such as universal child benefits, nutrition, and early years support, as well as data to monitor these effects, can produce high rates of return.