We’re pleased to share a recently released journal article on our study about father engagement and early childhood development in humanitarian settings, based on work in the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.

This study examined how fathers interact with their young children in contexts of displacement and what happens when programs intentionally include them in parenting support.

Key findings include:

• Increased father engagement in play and interactions with young children

• Shifts in caregiving practices, including more responsive and supportive behaviors

• Reductions in harsh child discipline among participating fathers

• Evidence that fathers - often overlooked in ECD programming - can be meaningfully reached and engaged, even in highly constrained settings

Taken together, the results reinforce a point that still hasn’t fully translated into programming at scale: fathers matter - not just as secondary caregivers, but as central actors in children’s development.

They also point to something more pragmatic: targeted, relatively low-cost interventions can shift parenting behaviors, even in complex humanitarian environments.

At a time when resources are tightening across the aid sector, that’s not a trivial finding; it has real implications for how programs are designed and prioritized.

This study is a causal impact evaluation of Watch, Play, Learn (WPL), a program by Sesame Workshop that consists of videos that aim to bring playful early learning opportunities to children, especially those affected by conflict and crisis, via mobile phones. This study focused on the effects of WPL math and social-emotional skills content delivered to Venezuelan migrants and Colombian children living in communities in Colombia where families and children face challenges in accessing essential services, including early education. Implementation was led by the Colombia office of Innovations for Poverty Action.

This study is a causal impact evaluation of Watch, Play, Learn (WPL), a program by Sesame Workshop that consists of videos that aim to bring playful early learning opportunities to children, especially those affected by conflict and crisis, via mobile phones. This study focused on the effects of WPL math and social-emotional skills content delivered to Venezuelan migrants and Colombian children living in communities in Colombia where families and children face challenges in accessing essential services, including early education. Implementation was led by the Colombia office of Innovations for Poverty Action.