World Bank (2013) Rich - poor gap in early childhood development

'Much of the inequality in learning outcomes between different types of young Vietnamese observed in primary education and beyond is already established before the age of formal schooling.'

'Almost a quarter of Vietnamese children below the age of 5 are stunted (GSO and UNICEF, 2011), Apart from poverty, child malnutrition can be explained by inadequate infant and young child feeding practices, including low rates of breastfeeding. In Vietnam and around the world, stunting has been found to strongly negatively affect cognitive skills development (Le Thuc Duc, 2009). Some stunted children remain behind their peers for the rest of their lives.'

'The brain development of young children is highly sensitive to stimulation and interaction. The more parents and care-givers interact with a young child, for example through talking, singing or reading, the better are the conditions for brain development. However, evidence shows that in Vietnam young children from the poorest households receive less stimulation from their parents than children from the wealthiest ones. This implies that during these early years in which children's brains are the most sensitive to interactions and learning, children from poor households are not receiving the investments that they need and are already falling behind children from wealthier households.'

World Bank (2013) Skilling up Vietnam: Preparing the workforce for a modern market economy Link