Determinants of Early Childhood Development in Kosovo

Abstract

International community recognizes investing in early childhood as a moral and legal obligation of the state to provide for an environment that allows the child to develop maximally, as well as an economically beneficial policy to break poverty traps. Using the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey carried out in 2013-2014 in Kosovo, I run four different logistic regressions to test: (i) the impact of learning environment, (ii) demographics, (iii) child’s characteristics, and (iv) household’s attitude towards violence on whether the child is on the right track of development as defined by UNICEF. 92.2 percent of Kosovar children 36 to 59 months old, surveyed at that time, were on the right track of development. Factors associated with being on the right track of development are: parental engagement in learning and play, access to books and toys, living in rural area, birth order, and tolerance towards domestic violence.