About the Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care

What did federal/provincial/territorial governments agree to in March 2003?

The March 2003 Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care outlines the agreement made by governments¹  to improve access to affordable, quality, provincially and territorially regulated early learning and child care programs and services.

What is the Government of Canada's contribution to early learning and child care?

The Government of Canada is providing $1.05 billion over 5 years to provinces/territories to support their investments in early learning and child care. The funding profile for early learning and child care provides a breakdown of the per capita funding being received by provinces/territories.

How are provinces and territories investing in early learning and child care?

Click on the links to the left of this screen to find out more about early learning and child care programs, services and supports across the country.

How can the public track what governments are doing with respect to early childhood development programs and services?

As part of this agreement, governments¹  have agreed to report annually on their progress in improving access to affordable, quality early learning and child care programs and services beginning in November 2004.  Specifically, governments will report on:

• Descriptive and expenditure information on all early learning and child care programs and services;
• Indicators of availability, such as number of spaces in early learning and child care settings broken down by age of children and type of setting;
• Indicators of affordability, such as number of children receiving subsidies, income and social eligibility for fee subsidies, and maximum subsidy by age of child; and
• Indicators of quality, such as training requirements, child/caregiver rations and group size, where available.

Click on the links to the left of this screen to see the reports on early learning and child care activities and expenditures from each jurisdiction.

¹ While the Government of Québec supports the general principles of the Early Childhood Development Agreement and the Multilateral Framework on Early Learning and Child Care, it did not participate in developing these initiatives because it intends to preserve its sole responsibility on social matters. However, Quebec receives its share of federal funding and the Government of Québec is making major investments toward programs and services for families and children.