St. Kitts Residents Attend Meeting
Photo By Erasmus Williams
Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
August 27, 2008 (CUOPM)
Tuesday’s official opening of the Challengers/Stonefort Multi-Purpose Centre, which houses an Early Childhood Development Centre, brings the Early Childhood Development Unit closer towards achieving its mission of not only increasing access to Early Childhood but access to high quality care and education.
“Early Childhood is a highly sensitive period marked by rapid transformations in physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development”¦under nutrition, deprivations of care, and poor treatment are particularly damaging to young children, with repercussions often felt into the adult years. Inadequate stimulation in the first year of life can have serious long term effects,” said Co-ordinator of the Early Childhood Development Centre, Mrs. Vanta Walters.
Mrs. Walters told top government officials including Governor General His Excellency Dr. Sir Cuthbert Sebastian and Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas, as well as scores of residents from Challengers and Stonefort that a child who receives extremely poor care or who rarely hears language is likely to suffer developmental deficits that are difficult to address later.
“Good Early Childhood Programmes can significantly enhance young children’s well being in these formative years and compliment the care received at home. We at the Early Childhood Development Unit are committed to helping to ensure the best possible start in life for our Nation’s children. Comprehensive early care provides the building blocks for social and intellectual competence that allows children to reach their full potential. Early Childhood Care is a solid investment,” she said.
