Wenfeng gets the best start in life

A cow bell clanks gently in the otherwise still and quiet morning on a ridge high above Tongjiang river, Sichuan Province. The hillside is sculpted into terraces where farmers grow rice, wheat and potatoes. An older woman, Li Xiuxiang, walks down the terraces towards the clanking cow. On her back is a small boy, her grandson Wenfeng, who is one and a half years old. He is alert and curious, smiling and pointing at things as they pass.

Xiuxiang talks to Wenfeng constantly as she unties the cow and leads it back through the terraces to the courtyard house at the top of the hill. “We’re going back now,” she says. “Let’s go home.” As they pass a tree, she picks a small branch with leaves on it and gives this to Wenfeng to play with. He holds it over his head like an umbrella, laughing.

Wenfeng’s home is in a traditional courtyard house, shared by several related families. Part of the building has been renovated, but one side and the cow shed are still made from wood and dried mud. A rusted machine for stripping rice husks stands in one corner of the yard. Like other houses in this area, it is mainly home to old people and small children. The middle generation is missing – they have gone to work in China’s expanding cities.

“My son and daughter-in-law are working at a factory in Chongqing, and I'm at home caring for my grandson,” Xiuxiang explains. “Wenfeng is very inquisitive every day. When I take care of him, my mind is completely occupied. I have to think of all the ways to look after him. I’m worried that he might trip and fall. I feel a heavy burden.”

Being a rural farmer is a hard life for Xiuxiang, 55, and she struggles to find enough time for Wenfeng, often carrying him on her back whole she does other chores. “As well as taking care of the baby, I also feed a cow, two pigs and some chickens," she says. "I planted some vegetables, but they didn’t do well this year.”

Xiuxiang spends around 2,000 yuan (US $275) a month on living expenses for herself and Wenfeng, including food, toys and clothes. "When I go shopping for Wenfeng, I spend money carefully because his parents’ wages are low and their living expenses in the city are high,” she says. "I find it difficult to do this alone but there’s nothing I can do about it. Wenfeng’s parents have to go out to work, and we must have money to live.”

Early childhood development

Early childhood, for zero to six years old, is a critical window of opportunity to shape a child’s future development. In the first few years of life, more than one million neural connections are formed each second – a pace never repeated again. For children to achieve their full potential in life, they need specific things during this period, including good health and nutrition, early learning and stimulation, safety and security, and responsive caregiving.

Yet in 2020, nearly four in ten children in rural China were left behind, often with grandparents, while their parents went to work in cities.

To help support these families, UNICEF, the Center for Women and Children's Health of the National Health Commission and other partners are scaling-up a programme in 30 provinces that provides early childhood development (ECD) services, as part of primary health care. This includes screening for parenting risk factors, ECD counselling, care group activities and home visits to vulnerable children.

UNICEF is also advocating for family-friendly policies that can help keep families together, while a new campaign, 'Parent with Purpose, Nuture their Future', is bringing practical messages about ECD to parents and caregivers nationwide.

“In China, nearly 17 million children under 5 years old have not been able to reach their full potential, a significant proportion of them in rural areas,” UNICEF Maternal and Child Health Specialist Huang Xiaona comments. "The main goal of our programme is to help local communities provide quality early childhood development services to families. Our ECD campaign will complement this by sharing knowledge and practices on ECD for parents and caregivers across the country.”

Care group activities

In the valley below Xiuxiang’s village, the town of Washi perches precariously on the steep slope above the river. Terraces of tall buildings climb the hillside, one row above another. A new road links the town with the villages, making it easier for older people like Xiuxiang to visit the market and hospital. Located in the centre of town, Washi Township Hospital is a modern, high-rise facility with a wing specifically designed for children. Here, the walls and floor are padded to protect young children and a photo of an underwater scene with lots of brightly coloured fish covers the ceiling.

Xiuxiang and Wenfeng make their way to a playroom, where a care group activity is starting. The facilitator plays music, while the children dance and clap hands. After everyone has introduced themselves, she starts an activity where the children play with balls while learning about names and colours. Another health worker, Wang Lu, assists Wenfeng. “Can you pick up the yellow ball?” she asks him. “Please bring me the pink ball.”

As well as supporting care group activities, Wang Lu also trains village health workers who visit vulnerable families like Wenfeng’s in ECD.

“Many young parents this area go away to work, so there are a lot of left-behind children," she says. "These children are cared for by their grandparents, but they’re usually busy with farm work and spend very little time with them. At first, many caregivers didn't pay much attention to early childhood development and weren't very willing to participate in our care group activities. But later, many caregivers saw the changes in their children, and became very active in taking part in the activities.”

Xiuxiang is one of the caregivers who has changed her approach. “Taking Wenfeng to the care group is great way to support his development,” she says. “He has become more outgoing and confident after playing there. It’s also very helpful for teaching me about childcare because I didn’t know much before. Now, every time the hospital has activities, we go there.”

Home sweet home

In between coming to the hospital, Xiuxiang also receives regular home visits from a village health worker, Dr Zhao. He checks on Wenfeng’s progress and follows up with Xiuxiang on the lessons from the care group. “Dr Zhao advised me to talk to Wenfeng more and to help him recognise and eat different types of foods,” Xiuxiang says. “His suggestions are very useful. Many of the things he taught me, I didn’t consider before.”

Reflecting on the overall experience of taking part in the ECD programme, Xiuxiang realises that Wenfeng is not the only person in the family to have changed. “Of course, I'm happy with the changes in my grandson,” she says. “But I also know more about how to raise a child now. I think this is very good for me. In the past, I talked to Wenfeng casually. Now, I pay more attention and help him understand what I say. I feel that I have also changed a lot as a caregiver.”

Xiuliang smiles and laughs, her eyes twinkling. "I hope more care group activities can be organised,” she says. “Wenfeng and I will continue to take part!”