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New efforts to support the development of young children in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi is now prepared to invest in a holistic approach to early childhood development to strengthen its global reputation as a child-friendly city.

Omar Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence (AI), said at the World Early Childhood Development (WED) forum in Abu Dhabi that the country recognises the importance of creating an ideal environment for children to thrive, develop, and expand their perceptions and knowledge, as well as providing them with a safe and fruitful experience in the technological space.

On Wednesday, A government official said that the UAE provides a safe environment in which children can grow up to become responsible citizens and could contribute to the growth of the country.

The UAE Early Childhood Development Authority has launched WED Movement to ensure the positive impact of technology on children’s lives, empowering the early childhood development sector, contributing to humanizing technology, and promoting efforts to leverage AI applications in developing the best early childhood development practices.

In the study titled: “The Best Investments that Societies Can Make”, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, former President of the World Bank Group, said that investing in the early years of a child not only changes their lives of them but can modify their path of competitive growth.

He pointed out that investing in the early years especially the first 1,000 days of life at peak brain development is important to help children achieve great things.

The strategy is to implement a system or framework for child rights protection, investing in children’s emotional and social well-being in their early years because of the positive effects on long-term economic and social development, and dealing with online addiction because parents are concerned about its impact on their children’s mental and physical development.

Other options include creating rehabilitation programs for parents to deal with children from pregnancy until the age of eight, the necessity for national research work to analyze the needs of childhood at the country level, and working on successful investments based on these surveys.

These steps will help to make the future of the young generation brighter.

Young children are the country’s future, and investing in early childhood development will improve their quality of life while increasing productivity and economic activity.