Policy Coherence for Early Childhood Care and Education in the UAE: Toward Achieving SDG 4.2 through Strategic Integration and Governance Reform
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70301/Keywords:
1. Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) , 2. Sustainable Development Goal 4.2 (SDG 4.2) , 3. Policy coherence , 4. Multi-sector collaboration , 5. Design-led policy innovation , 6. Governance integration , 7. Quality assurance , 8. Data interoperability , 9. Sharjah Private Education Authority (SPEA) , 10. ECCE workforce development , 11. Education strategy , and 12. System transformation .Abstract
This working paper examines the policy development and transformation of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with specific focus on the alignment with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4.2. It highlights the country’s ambitious efforts to reform ECCE governance through a combination of centralized federal strategies and decentralized local innovations, particularly in the Emirate of Sharjah. Drawing on a mixed-methods research approach that includes quantitative survey data from nursery leaders, semi-structured interviews with policy experts, and an in-depth case study of the Sharjah Private Education Authority (SPEA), the paper explores both structural barriers and emergent opportunities within the ECCE ecosystem. Findings reveal that while the UAE has demonstrated strong political commitment to ECCE, the implementation remains fragmented, especially in areas such as regulatory oversight, inter-agency collaboration, data integration, and equitable funding. A statistically significant correlation was found between multi-sectoral collaboration and perceived policy effectiveness (ρ = 0.423, p < 0.01). These results suggest that cross-ministerial governance and coherent quality assurance systems are critical for system-level transformation. The paper concludes with five strategic recommendations including: the creation of a federal ECCE coordination mechanism; the development of a national regulatory and quality assurance framework; investment in workforce development; improved data interoperability; and strengthened public-private partnerships. As global interest grows in early childhood policy transformation, the UAE’s hybrid model of balancing national ambition with local innovation, offers insights for high-income, multicultural education systems around the world.
References
Al Nuaimi, A., & Al Ameri, A. (2021). Inclusive education in the UAE: Progress and challenges. UAE Ministry of Education.
Bagheri, A., & Pihie, Z. A. L. (2011). Entrepreneurial leadership: Towards a model for learning and development. Human Resource Development International, 14(4), 447–463. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678868.2011.601594
Barnett, W. S., & Nores, M. (2015). Investment in early childhood education in a global context. Economics of Education Review, 49, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econedurev.2015.06.002
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Harvard University Press.
Christensen, C. M. (1997). The innovator’s dilemma: When new technologies cause great firms to fail. Harvard Business Review Press.
Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Dolowitz, D., & Marsh, D. (2022). Policy transfer and learning in public policy: A critical overview. Routledge.
Federal Authority for Early Education. (2022). Strategic overview of the federal vision for early education in the UAE. UAE Government.
Fullan, M. (2007). The new meaning of educational change (4th ed.). Teachers College Press.
Heckman, J. J. (2011). The economics of inequality: The value of early childhood education. American Educator, 35(1), 31–35.
Heckman, J. J., & Karapakula, G. (2019). The Perry Preschoolers at late midlife: A study in design-specific inference. National Bureau of Economic Research. https://doi.org/10.3386/w25888
Kaddoura, B. (2024). Strategic coherence in ECCE governance: A UAE case study [Doctoral dissertation, SBS Swiss Business School].Leotti, S. M., McNamee, C. E., & Pappas, T. (2021). Discourse and power in social policy: A critical discourse analysis of ECCE narratives. Policy Futures in Education, 19(4), 448–463. https://doi.org/10.1177/1478210321990875
Leponiemi, L., Ruoho, N., & Tuominen, S. (2020). Development of an innovation-friendly education system. HundrED. https://doi.org/10.58261/HBFX7261
Ministry of Cabinet Affairs. (2017). UAE Vision 2021 national agenda. UAE Government. https://www.vision2021.ae/en
OECD. (2017). Starting Strong V: Transitions from Early Childhood Education and Care to Primary Education. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264276253-en
OECD. (2020). Starting strong V: Transitions from early childhood education and care to primary education. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/23132758
Raffety, D. (2019). Leadership and innovation in education: System transformation for the UK education sector. Sage Publications.
Razzouk, R., & Shute, V. (2012). What is design thinking and why is it important? Review of Educational Research, 82(3), 330–348. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654312457429
Sharjah Education Council. (2023). Sharjah Recommendations for ECCE policy integration and implementation. Sharjah Government Publishing.
Schleicher, A. (2019). World class: How to build a 21st-century school system. OECD Publishing.
UNESCO. (2022). ECCE programme expansion and system transformation: Policy brief for SDG 4.2 implementation. UNESCO Education Sector.
UNESCO. (2022). ECCE Progress Assessment Tool for Transformation (ECCE-PATT) [Assessment Framework]. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000380077
UNICEF. (2019). Early childhood development in the MENA region: Progress and challenges. United Nations Children’s Fund.
UNICEF. (2023). Strengthening ECCE governance in complex systems: Global lessons and policy tools. UNICEF Policy Series.
United Nations. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development. United Nations. https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda
Urban, M., Cardini, A., Guevara, J., Okengo, L., & Flórez-Romero, R. (2019). Early childhood education and care in the 21st Century: Challenges and opportunities. UNESCO Publishing
Schmidt, C., & Alasuutari, M. (2023). Policy framing in global ECCE reform: A comparative discourse analysis. International Journal of Early Childhood, 55(1), 17–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-023-00322-2
Tashakkori, A., & Teddlie, C. (2003). Handbook of mixed methods in social and behavioral research. SAGE Publications.
UAE Government. (2021). UAE Vision 2031: Policy directions for a sustainable and innovative future. UAE Government Portal. https://u.ae/en/about-the-uae/strategies-initiatives-and-awards/federal-governments-strategies
UNESCO. (2021). Quality guidelines for early childhood education and care. Paris: UNESCO.
World Bank. (2021). Investing in early childhood development: An economic and social imperative. World Bank Education Global Practice.
World Economic Forum. (2020). The future of jobs report 2020. https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020/
Yin, R. K. (2014). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). Sage Publications.
Zein, S. (2018). Early childhood education in the Middle East and North Africa: Challenges, developments, and future directions. Childhood Education, 94(1), 6–10. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2018.1423679
Additional Files
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 bochra Kaddoura (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Publication Agreement
This Publication Agreement ("Agreement") is made between the author(s) ("Author") and the SBS Journal of Applied Business Research ("Journal"). By submitting a manuscript for publication, the Author agrees to the following terms:
1. Grant of License
The Author retains full copyright ownership of the submitted and published work. The Author grants the Journal a non-exclusive license to publish, distribute, and archive the article in any format or medium, including but not limited to online and print versions.
2. Open Access and Licensing
All articles published in the Journal are fully open access under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This means that:
• The work can be freely used, shared, and adapted by anyone, provided that proper attribution is given to the original Author.
• The full license terms can be found at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
• No additional restrictions are placed on the use of published articles.
3. Author Responsibilities and Warranties
The Author guarantees that:
• The submitted work is original and has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere.
• The work does not infringe on any third-party rights, including copyright, trademark, or proprietary rights.
• All necessary permissions for copyrighted materials used in the manuscript (e.g., figures, tables) have been obtained.
• The manuscript complies with ethical research standards and does not contain any form of plagiarism or falsified data.
4. Editorial and Publication Process
• The Journal reserves the right to perform editorial revisions for clarity, formatting, and consistency while maintaining the integrity of the Author’s work.
• The publication of an article is subject to peer review, and acceptance is not guaranteed upon submission.
5. Retraction and Corrections
• The Journal follows COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines and reserves the right to retract, correct, or withdraw an article in cases of misconduct, errors, or ethical concerns.
6. Governing Law
This Agreement is governed by the laws of Switzerland. Any disputes arising under this Agreement shall be resolved in the courts of Zurich, Switzerland.
7. Agreement Acceptance
By submitting a manuscript, the Author acknowledges and agrees to the terms outlined in this Agreement.
Editor-In-Chief
Prof. Dr. Milos Petkovic
