It was almost like the emerald green of their tiny knit sweaters was carefully chosen to match the sprawling tea plantations around the daycare centre. Exuberant and impatient, the children bounce up and down, eager for their morning milk box, distributed each day to promote healthy growth.

Better care for these newborns could save a life. UNICEF brings paediatric mentors to Rwandan hospitals, so more babies survive to their first birthday and beyond.

Leading her team of civil engineers, Donata is a new UNICEF-supported early childhood development centres.

Since the beginning of 2019, just 160 young volunteers in Rwanda have re-enrolled over 1,200 children in school.

Perched on a green mountain in Rwanda’s Western Province, flanked by tea plantations, young children sing and play at a new early childhood development centre under the watchful, loving eyes of their caregivers. While the children are busy making friends, taking naps and playing with their toys, their parents pluck tea on the Rutsiro Tea Plantation of Rwanda Mountain Tea Ltd.