MORE than R300000 will be on offer when the winners of Early Childhood Development (ECD) Awards are announced in Pretoria tomorrow night.

MORE than R300000 will be on offer when the winners of Early Childhood Development (ECD) Awards are announced in Pretoria tomorrow night.

But the Absa and Sowetan ECD awards are more than just about money. We strive to create a sector of highly-skilled and motivated ECD resource and training organisations, home-based and community-based centres, and ECD practitioners. We will also create innovators of sophisticated and highly-effective ECD methods, programmes and producers of relevant and appropriate ECD publications.

We strive to promote and recognise the excellence, hard work, dedication and investment in the future of our children by individual practitioners, centres and organisations involved in ECD.

We strive to contribute to the child's development through the development of an environment of good health, nutrition, education and teaching in a setting within the family and community context.

Here is a breakdown of the awards: There is R50000, R30000 and R15000, respectively, for first, second and third home-based and community-based ECD centres and registered ECD training and development centres.

There is also R30000, R20000 and R10000 for first, second and third-placed ECD practitioners. Then there is R20000 for an individual, group or organisation that shows innovation in ECD that is worth emulating.

There is a further R10000 to a publication that is seen to be taking ECD forward.