Parents of children living with disabilities in Gelephu can now enroll their children in the Early Childhood Care and Development Centre or ECCD Centre. The district’s first model-inclusive ECCD opened at Trashiling Demkhong in Gelephu Thromde recently. It is the third such centre in the country after the first two opened in Thimphu and Trashigang.
Gelephu Thrompon along with officials from the Thromde and UNICEF Bhutan inaugurated the center recently.
The model inclusive ECCD centre in Gelephu has three facilitators and 64 children including 14 with disabilities.
One of the facilitators said the current ECCD centre has just two rooms and no attached bathroom.
One room is used as a classroom and the other one is for the children to nap.
“Being near the highway, they go outside when using the toilet. It would be convenient at the new location with an indoor toilet. They can also play outdoors unlike here,” said Sonam Choden, a facilitator.
She said once they move to the new ECCD centre, they will have adequate rooms, toilet and shower facilities including proper walkways for children living with disabilities and open outdoor space for children to play.
Some of the parents said opening such an inclusive ECCD centre will have a profound impact on the lives of their children and families with access to early intervention services.
“Children learn quite fast during the early years. They can learn the basics including the alphabets as they attain the age of four or five years which is helpful instead of staying idle at home,” said Bikram Gurung, a parent.
“Enrolling our children in the centre helps them acquire knowledge. At the same time, we can also get more time to work. It is convenient for us at our workplace when we keep our children at the centre especially when there is no one to take care of them at home,” said Shanti Ram Phuyal, another parent.
Gelephu Thromde Education Officer said the centre is also near Special Educational Needs schools such as the Gelephu Lower Secondary School and Gelephu Higher Secondary School. This strategic location, he said, will cultivate a sense of belonging and inclusivity, providing a nurturing environment where children can embark on their learning journeys, and develop, and form lasting friendships together.
The Gelephu Thromde constructed the model-inclusive ECCD center in collaboration with UNICEF Bhutan spending around Nu 60 M of which Nu 3.7 M was funded by UNICEF Bhutan.
Karma Wangdi, Sarpang
Edited by Phub Gyem
