Carer involvement with children and child-friendly book ownership in Bangladesh

Two early childhood development aspects: carer involvement with children, and their ownership of age-appropriate books, were evaluated. Children aged 0-4 years from Bangladesh, extracted from population-based Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019, were assessed using survey adjusted logistic regression models and district-wise spatial distribution. Among 13 806 children, 11.2% had no shared activities with carers, and 60.7% had at least four shared activities. Among 22 796 children, 27.4% owned at least one book. Higher carer-child shared activities and more child-friendly books in households were observed in the Western part of Bangladesh. Children from higher socioeconomic households with educated mothers and greater exposure to media, had higher carer-child interaction and greater availability of books. These findings can aid policies targeting psychological and cognitive development of children in Bangladesh.

Automated summary

This study evaluated the involvement of carers with children and the ownership of age-appropriate books. The findings showed that among children aged 0-4 years in Bangladesh, 11.2% had no shared activities with carers, and 60.7% had at least four shared activities. Among the surveyed children, 27.4% owned at least one book. The Western part of Bangladesh had higher levels of carer-child shared activities and more child-friendly books in households.