By Hamad Rashid,
Tanzania has made history for the first time by developing and producing a national Scorecard that will measure various indicators of early childhood development (ECD).
The development of the Scorecard took nearly four years, led by the Tanzania Early Childhood Development Network (TECDEN) with funding from the Hilton Foundation, in collaboration with the Government, the University of Dar es Salaam, and the Ifakara Health Institute following its completion, training on the use of the digital system was conducted in Morogoro Region from 2 to 6 December 2025.
Speaking at the launch of the training, the Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups, Advocate Amon Mpanju, urged participants to ensure that the Scorecard is used effectively in their workplaces.
“Those who attend this training make sure you are working hard, make sure those who collect data are collecting accurate data, analyzing it and integrating it, because it is what will guide decisions from the council level to the nation,” said Advocate Mpanju.
He also directed District Councils to allocate sufficient budgets for early childhood development (ECD) interventions. “Go and engage the Directors and Council leaders so that they allocate sufficient funds for ECD issues in our councils,” he stressed.
Advocate Amon Mpanju: The Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups in Tanzania.
TECDEN: Scorecard developed based on Tanzanian needs
However, TECDEN Executive Director, Mwajuma Kibwana, said the Scorecard is a major step inspired by the real needs of Tanzanians.
“This Scorecard has been developed by Tanzanians based on Tanzanian needs. Through the Ministry coordinating the National Integrated MMMAM Program, we emphasize the correct use of information at all levels,” said Kibwana.
He added that, the success of the Scorecard will depend on the solidarity of all stakeholders and the use of statistics for the broader interests of children. “If we all use this information for the interests of children, one day we will be proud to be among the founders of the first national Scorecard in Tanzania”.
Mwajuma Kibwana: TECDEN Executive Director
More than 200 participants trained on the use of the system
More than 200 participants, representing the nutrition, health, education, social welfare sectors, all regions as well as 184 Councils in the country, have participated in the training, including maternal and child health coordinators.
On the first day of the training, a Chief Research Scientist from the Ifakara Health Institute, Dr. Esther Elsaria, explained how the Scorecard works.
“The Scorecard is a digital system that shows the results of the implementation of child care indicators using colors, Red indicates that the indicator is not doing well, green indicates that it is doing well, and yellow indicates that it is doing well but still needs to be improved, so, through this tool accountability will increase,” she explained.
Dr. Esther Elsaria: providing training to participants
Call for stakeholders to contribute to the success of the Scorecard
TECDEN Project Manager, Lazaro Ernest, said all stakeholders, especially non-governmental organizations, have a great opportunity to contribute to the implementation of the Scorecard.
“The existing indicators do not discriminate between sectors; they touch on health, nutrition, education, social welfare, child protection and safety. Therefore, all organizations working on child issues have the opportunity to participate fully,” he said.
Participants in training.
Regions and Councils cite the benefits of the system
Speaking on the second day of the training, Denis Mgiye, Arusha Regional Social Welfare Officer, said the Scorecard will help to clearly identify the performance of each council.
“We were receiving implementation reports, but there were gaps in showing actual performance. The Scorecard will show us the performance of each council on each indicator,” he said.
On the government side, the Director of the ICT Unit of the Ministry of Social Development, Michael Nyahinga, said the system will simplify decision-making and monitoring the implementation of ECD interventions.
“Accurate data gives us the right direction to make decisions: where to allocate resources and where to strengthen services. This system also simplifies operations and access to information,” he explained.
Godwin Mongo” ECD Senior Specialist from the Ministry of Community Development (standing in the middle) with training participants
Scolastica Olomi from Black Maendeleo said the Scorecard will help organizations identify areas that need more strength in the implementation of ECD programs.
“We have been working on ECD for a long time, but we were lacking detailed information in some areas. The Scorecard will help us know where more efforts are needed,” she said.
Participants in training.
