South Africa: Thrive By Five Uses Data to Drive Smarter Investment in Early Childhood

By Tamsin Metelerkamp

Sonja Giese's more-than-30-year career in child development has seen her take on a pioneering role in using data to transform early learning outcomes in South Africa. Through initiatives like the Thrive by Five Index, she has helped empower communities, educators and policymakers to drive meaningful social change.

From an early age, DataDrive2030 founder and executive director Sonja Giese knew that her future would involve working in the child development sector. Her awareness of both the vulnerability of children and the social injustices shaping South African society was the driving force behind a more-than-30-year career marked by milestones in research and problem solving.

One of these milestones was the release of a game-changing report on the early childhood development (ECD) sector, the Thrive by Five Index, in 2022. The index was initiated by Innovation Edge - an impact-first investor founded by Giese to target early childhood challenges - in collaboration with other organisations. It was the largest survey of preschool child outcomes ever attempted in South Africa.

Reflecting on the impact of the index, Giese said: "It's been much more profound than I even anticipated, and I think it's because it's a true partnership. After the first launch of the index... one of the things I was anxious about was that the sector would feel criticised... but actually what they felt was heard and seen. They felt validated. They felt like their work was important."

Democratised data

The national survey behind the index, conducted every three years,...

Read the full story on Daily Maverick.

Copyright © 2026 Daily Maverick. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.