Latin America and the Caribbean leads the developing world in the provision of pre-school education, according to the annual Education for All Global Monitoring Report, published by UNESCO today. However, despite well-documented benefits for child development and well-being, the Report finds that this area remains the forgotten link in the education chain in many regions, and that half the world's countries have no early childhood care and education policy for children under age three.

Early childhood care and education, the first of six Education for All goals the world is committed to achieving by 2015*, is the theme of this edition of the Report. The study also includes an assessment of progress towards the other five objectives, showing a marked acceleration in primary school enrolments, for both boys and girls, and an increase in aid to education, offset in several countries by a decline in national education spending.