Early childhood in focus: data showing the urgency to act
Gabriela Bahia
A study by Todos Pela Educação, based on the Continuous National Household Sample Survey (Pnad-C) and the School Census, reveals that 41.2% of children up to 3 years old were enrolled in daycare in 2024, still below the 50% target set by the National Education Plan.
The situation is even more critical for the millions who lack access: 2.3 million children aged 0 to 3 do not attend daycare because of a lack of places or the distance to the facilities.
Structural inequality deepens across social classes: 30.6% of children from the poorest families have access to daycare, compared with 60% among the wealthiest. The contrast is even greater among babies: only 18.6% of children under 1 year old are in daycare, and among the poorest, 34% face barriers to securing a place.
Experts point out that, in addition to expanding the number of places, it is urgent to raise society’s awareness of the importance of this stage as a “window of opportunity” for development. The Early Childhood Panorama survey, conducted by Fundação Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal with Datafolha, found that 84% of Brazilians do not consider the first six years one of the most important stages of life, and 41% believe that this period occurs only in adulthood.
The warning is underscored by Bianca Dantas, a professor and innovation manager at Fundação 1Bi:
“Neglecting access to education in the early years prevents students from entering elementary school better prepared, which may interfere with the literacy process and with staying in school. The earlier we introduce children to the school environment, the greater the chances of combating dropout.”
Other data to keep monitoring (and demanding action on):
Growing inequality: Although daycare enrollment increased between 2016 and 2024, the gap between services for the poorest and wealthiest children rose from 22 to 29.4 percentage points.
Preschool (mandatory): In preschool, which is already a mandatory stage, 94.6% of children aged 4 and 5 are enrolled, although more than 329,000 are still out of school. Among poorer families, the main obstacle continues to be access; among wealthier families, non-attendance is generally the decision of those responsible for the children.
Persistent regional inequalities: The North and Northeast regions continue to have the lowest service coverage rates. In 2024, São Paulo recorded the highest daycare rate (56.8%), while Amapá recorded the lowest (9.7%)
By: Gabriela Bahia, Communications Analyst at Fundação 1Bi.
