The role of day care centres in promoting physical, social and cognitive development of children under five years in Tanzania: the case study of Ilala municipal council in Dar es Salaam

The study investigated the role of day care centres in promoting physical, social and cognitive development of children under five years in Ilala Municipality, Tanzania. Three research objectives guided the study were: firstly, assessing the physical activities conducted in the studied day care centres; secondly, assessing the psychosocial activities conducted in the studied day care centres; thirdly, examining the intellectual activities conducted in the studied day care centres. The study employed the qualitative approach and guided by the case study design. The study employed simple random and purposive sampling techniques. The study involved seventy informants in the categories of heads of day care centres, day care centres’ assistants, children attending day care centres’ programs, and parents of children at the centres. Data generation methods included interviews, observation, focus group discussions and documentary search. Data were subjected to content analysis. The main findings of the study were: firstly, all the day care centres involved in the study revealed various physical, psychosocial, and intellectual activities. However, it was confirmed by majority of respondents that children in day care centres were provided with inadequate and inequitable physical, psychosocial and intellectual activities. Secondly, the study revealed that physical activities which were conducted were basically inadequate and inequitable and focused mainly on games and body exercises such as jumping and running, bouncing, dodging, kicking and throwing of balls. Thirdly, the study indicated that the psychosocial activities conducted were table manners, speaking to children, hygiene services, religious services and counselling services. Cognitive activities were sequential and logical arrangement of similar objects, identification of things by names and types, singing, drawing, and telling stories, proverbs, riddles and idioms, and education on life skills and performance appraisal. Such activities were reported to be inadequate due to, among reasons, lack of spaces for physical activities, lack of play equipment, gender segregation during playing, lack of knowledge, little experience of day care assistants and insufficient financial resources for centre owners. The study concluded that physical, psychosocial and cognitive activities are very crucial for children’s development. These activities reciprocally interact, integrate and relate to each other. The study recommended that owners of the day care centres should adequately and equitably supply learning materials and facilities for required activities. They should increase the number of day care centre’s assistants with required qualifications that suffice the early child development and education. Nevertheless, the Government through respective Ministry should organize seminars and workshops for the day care centres’ owners, assistants and parents on child feeding, child rights, and role of day care centres, as well as on the identification of the child’s abnormality. The study further recommended on the necessity of regular inspections in day care centres for observance of activities conducted and hygiene and sanitation facilities for healthy and development of children under five years. Finally, the study recommends that similar studies should be done in other areas not covered in the present study.