An ad hoc committee will plan and conduct a one and a half-day interactive public workshop in Abidjan, Cote D'Ivoire featuring presentations and discussions that highlight the intersections of innovation and investing in young children globally, using examples across areas of health, education, nutrition, and social protection. Speakers will explore the dynamics at play between diverse sociopolitical contexts, types of economies, sectors, and areas of impact.

The committee will identify specific topics to be addressed, develop the agenda, select and invite speakers and other participants, and moderate the discussions. A brief workshop summary of the presentations and discussions at the workshop will be prepared by a designated rapporteur in accordance with institutional guidelines. Communications and dissemination products will be drawn from the brief workshop summary.

Specific topics to be addressed:

1. Explore the costs and financing of quality early childhood development programs and policies with a focus on innovative financing tools, models or ideas. Include views from outside the traditional child health and development fields that may be complementary to strengthening investments in young children’s health, education, nutrition, and social protection.
2. Highlight innovations from research, program development and evaluation, and technology and product development that seek to improve children’s health, education, nutrition, and social protection. Innovations can be longstanding successes or ideas that have not yet been launched or scaled.
3. Discuss the challenges and historical and sociopolitical barriers to investing in Francophone countries, and explore opportunities to build off of existing promising investments and innovations.

This workshop is joint with the Institute for Human Development at the Aga Khan University, and Jacobs Foundation.