Bhubaneswar: In a landmark move to strengthen Early Childhood Care, Education, and Development (ECCED), the Governments of Odisha and Meghalaya today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster inter-state collaboration, knowledge sharing, and capacity building in Early Childhood Development (ECD).
The MoU was signed in the presence of Deoranjan Kumar Singh, Development Commissioner cum ACS, Odisha; Dr. Sampath Kumar, Principal Secretary – Health, Social Welfare, Community & Rural Development Departments and Development Commissioner, Planning Department, Government of Meghalaya; Shubha Sarma, Principal Secretary, Women & Child Development Department, Government of Odisha; and Monisha Banerjee, Director, ICDS & Social Welfare.
The agreement was formally signed by Dr. Sampath Kumar, Principal Secretary, Government of Meghalaya, and Ananta Narayan Singh Laguri, Additional Secretary, Women & Child Development Department, Government of Odisha.
The MoU envisions collaboration between the two states to strengthen holistic Early Childhood Care, Education, and Development interventions, encompassing nutrition, health, early learning, responsive caregiving, community engagement, and institutional capacity building. It provides a framework for knowledge exchange, joint research, exposure visits, documentation of best practices, and capacity development of functionaries at various levels.
Speaking on the occasion, the dignitaries highlighted the critical importance of the early years as the foundation for lifelong health, learning, and well-being, and underscored the value of state-to-state learning in developing contextually relevant, community-driven solutions.
The partnership also seeks to leverage Odisha’s experience in community-based and culturally responsive ECD initiatives and Meghalaya’s innovative approaches to delivering social sector services in tribal and geographically challenging contexts, fostering a two-way learning process.
This collaboration reflects the shared commitment of both states to advancing equitable and inclusive early childhood outcomes, in alignment with national priorities for human capital development.
The MoU is expected to translate into actionable learning and tangible on-ground impact, benefiting young children, caregivers, and frontline workers across both states.
