Since the Thrive by Five Index — South Africa’s largest-yet survey of preschool child development — was released in early April this year, there has been a lot of activity in both government and civil society circles to find the best ways to use the data and improve early childhood development (ECD). 

Innovation Edge, an impact-first investor focused on solving early childhood challenges in South Africa, is tackling the problem of poor literacy and language standards in early learning programmes. The organisation has put out a call for social entrepreneurs to apply for funding for products or services that aim to improve preschool teachers’ support of early literacy development.

Proposed solutions need to be suitable for four- to six-year-old kids who attend early learning programmes in South Africa’s impoverished communities.

“One of the quite seriously concerning findings [of the Thrive by Five Index] was that around 49% of children from the poorest households, aged four to five, who are attending early learning programmes, are not meeting literacy and language standards for their age,” said Gilbert Anyetei, investment associate at Innovation Edge. 

“We were quite concerned about this, because literacy… forms the foundation for reading, writing, communicating [and] socialising, and it’s also quite crucial for success across all subjects.”

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Funding opportunity

The submissions put forward by social entrepreneurs must be appropriate for a no-tech or low-tech context, according to Innovation Edge’s criteria. The organisation is looking for ventures that are at the stage of feasibility testing or prototyping, rather than ideation.

“The solution must show us some sense of commercial viability and sustainability beyond our involvement,” said Anyetei. “We will provide financial support of up to R1.3-million per venture.”

Of those who make submissions for the campaign, a selected few will be supported to pitch their solutions to the Innovation Edge Investment Committee in September 2022. From these, the organisation will select at least three solutions to fund, according to Anyetei.

“We also provide non-financial support,” he continued. “We really help… link you to the correct or relevant stakeholders, and really try to help you with the tools to build this venture into a business.”

The closing date for submissions is 15 June.

Innovation

Within the ECD sector, non-government organisations and private philanthropists can provide funding that is far more flexible than that of government, according to Sonja Giese, former executive director of Innovation Edge and project lead for the Thrive by Five Index.

“It’s a space where we can develop and trial new ideas [and] solutions, which government just isn’t in a position to do,” said Giese. “But if the non-profit space or the non-governmental space can demonstrate what kind of interventions really work, then government can get behind them.

“Innovation Edge is uniquely placed, with the skillset and the resources to really support early-stage innovation. So their… funders invest in unproven ideas.”

Anyetei emphasised that government alone cannot solve the problems facing the ECD sector. Rather, collaboration between the public and private sectors is needed to ensure the best support for innovation.

Initiatives such as Innovation Edge’s campaign are a welcome use of the Thrive by Five data, according to Giese.

“If more and more people start speaking about helping children to thrive by five, I think we can start a movement, which is fantastic,” she said. DM/MC