The first five years of life lay the foundations for learning, behaviour and health. Yet the latest Thrive by Five Index reveals a deep and worrying truth: in 2024, only 42% of South African children were developmentally on track in early learning. More than half of our children are starting school already behind. In an already stretched education system under severe pressure, those who start with an early disadvantage are likely to keep falling further behind.

As a new school year begins, public attention once again turns to the matric results and the state of South Africa's education system. A matric certificate - particularly a good one - is often framed as the gateway to opportunity and a better future.

But a child's future is shaped long before matric. It begins in the first five years of life.

These early years lay the foundations for learning, behaviour and health. Yet the latest Thrive by Five Index reveals a deep and worrying truth: in 2024, only 42% of South African children were developmentally on track in early learning. More than half of our children are starting school already behind. In an already stretched education system under severe pressure, those who start with an early disadvantage are likely to keep falling further behind.

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If we are serious about addressing the education crisis, we must shift our focus. Early learning spaces deserve the same urgency, investment and attention we give to schools.

While the government has taken welcome steps - including the Bana Pele mass Early Childhood Development (ECD) registration drive and a commitment to universal access to quality early childhood development by 2030 - South Africa remains far...