A Quasi-experimental Evaluation of the Malezi Program in Tanzania

The quality of caregiving and the parent-child relationship is critical for early child development (ECD) and has been shown to be modifiable. This study evaluated an ECD project in Tanzania, assessing the effectiveness of radio messaging (RM) alone and a combined radio messaging/video job aids/ECD (RMV-ECD) intervention, using a two-arm pre-post design study, which enrolled a cohort of caregivers of children 0-24 months in four districts of Tabora region, following them for nine months. ECD radio messages were broadcast on popular stations at least 10 times/day reaching all study districts. In two districts, community health workers (CHW) trained in UNICEF's Care for Child Development package and used ECD videos in home- and facility-based sessions with caregivers. Five outcomes were used to assess the intervention effects: ECD knowledge, early stimulation, father engagement, responsive care, and environment safety. Additionally the effect of the training and video job aids on the quality of CHWs' counseling support was evaluated primarily using structured observation checklists of household visits and facility group counseling sessions with caregivers and their children. Qualitative data was collected from a subset of caregivers and CHW participating in the study to assess acceptability and other perceptions of the project.