Report on the Launch of the Global Scales for Early Development (GSED) and its Contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: Advancing Global Goals through Early Childhood Development Monitoring

On August 28, 2025, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) launched the Spanish version of the Global Scales for Early Development (GSED), a pivotal tool for monitoring child development up to 36 months of age. This initiative represents a significant step towards achieving several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by providing a standardized, open-access methodology to assess and support the developmental potential of young children, thereby guiding evidence-based policies and resource allocation.

Alignment with SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

The GSED directly supports SDG 3, which aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. By establishing a uniform scale for measuring development, the tool addresses a critical gap in pediatric health monitoring.

• Comprehensive Assessment: The GSED holistically evaluates key developmental domains, including cognitive, socioemotional, language, and motor skills, contributing to the overall well-being of children (Target 3.2).
• Standardized Measurement: It introduces the Development Score (D-score), a single, common metric that allows for consistent monitoring and comparison of child development across diverse populations, similar to how weight and height are used to track physical growth.
• Evidence for Policy: The data generated will enable governments and health organizations to design and implement more effective programs and services, ensuring children at risk of developmental delays receive timely support.

Fostering SDG 4: Quality Education

The GSED is foundational to achieving SDG 4, particularly Target 4.2, which calls for ensuring all children have access to quality early childhood development, care, and pre-primary education. A child’s developmental health in the first three years is a direct predictor of future educational success.

• Early Identification: The tool facilitates the early identification of developmental challenges, allowing for interventions that prepare children for lifelong learning.
• Informing Educational Programs: By providing robust data, the GSED helps policymakers create and refine early childhood education programs that effectively meet the developmental needs of the population.

Promoting SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

A core principle of the 2030 Agenda is to “leave no one behind.” The GSED promotes SDG 10 by creating a tool that is applicable across different cultures and socioeconomic contexts, helping to identify and address developmental disparities.

• Cross-Cultural Applicability: Unlike previous measures, the GSED was designed to account for the diversity of contexts in which children grow, ensuring equitable assessment.
• Targeted Resource Allocation: As an open-access tool, it empowers policymakers to allocate resources more effectively toward interventions supporting children at the greatest risk of not reaching their full potential, thereby reducing inequality from the earliest stages of life.

Strengthening SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

The development and dissemination of the GSED exemplify the collaborative spirit of SDG 17. The project is a result of a multi-stakeholder partnership committed to a shared global objective.

1. International Collaboration: The methodology was developed by a multidisciplinary team coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO).
2. Regional Partnership: The launch in the Americas was a joint effort between PAHO and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), reaffirming a regional commitment to early childhood development.
3. Global Validation: The tool’s robustness is being established through extensive data collection and validation in numerous countries, including Bangladesh, Pakistan, Tanzania, Brazil, Chile, China, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Netherlands.

GSED Package and Future Development

The comprehensive GSED package is designed for widespread implementation and includes a variety of resources to support public health and research initiatives. The tool will continue to be refined as more global data is collected.

• Available Materials: The package contains short and long assessment forms, user manuals, scoring guides, and a technical report on its validation methodology.
• Digital Access: A digital application of the GSED is also available to facilitate data collection and analysis.
• Future Enhancements: An expanded version incorporating international norms and standards on child development will be released once sufficient data has been gathered, further strengthening its utility in advancing the SDGs.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

The article on the Global Scales for Early Development (GSED) directly and indirectly connects to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by focusing on the foundational aspect of child well-being.

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being: The article’s central theme is the monitoring of child development, which is a critical component of child health. The GSED tool is designed to assess the holistic health of children under three, moving beyond physical growth to include cognitive and socioemotional well-being.
• SDG 4: Quality Education: The GSED tool measures key developmental domains, including cognitive and language skills, which are essential prerequisites for learning and readiness for primary education. By ensuring children are developmentally on track, the tool supports the foundational stages of quality education.
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities: The article explicitly states that the GSED tool will help “support children at greater risk of not reaching their full developmental potential.” By providing a standardized method to identify these children, it enables targeted interventions and policies to reduce developmental inequalities within and among countries.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

The content of the article aligns with the following specific SDG targets:

1. Target 4.2: “By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education.”
   • Explanation: This is the most directly relevant target. The article describes the GSED as a “package of measures to monitor child development up to 36 months of age” and a tool for “holistically assessing early childhood development.” Its purpose is to generate data to “guide policies” and “improve programs and services,” which directly contributes to ensuring quality early childhood development.
2. Target 3.2: “By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5 years of age…”
   • Explanation: While the article does not discuss mortality, monitoring child development is a key strategy for ensuring child survival and thriving. Developmental delays can be an early indicator of underlying health issues. The GSED tool helps identify vulnerable children who may require health and nutritional interventions, thereby contributing to the broader goal of reducing child mortality and promoting overall well-being.
3. Target 10.2: “By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.”
   • Explanation: The article highlights that the GSED data allows policymakers to “allocate resources more effectively toward programs and interventions that support children at greater risk.” This focus on at-risk populations is a direct effort to combat inequality from the earliest stage of life, promoting inclusion by ensuring all children have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

The article mentions and implies specific indicators that can be used for measurement:

• Directly Mentioned Indicator: The Development Score (D-score).
  • Explanation: The article introduces the “Development Score (D-score)” as an “innovative measurement parameter” that “incorporates all domains of child development into a common scale that is translated into a single score.” This D-score is a tangible, quantifiable indicator that directly measures progress toward Target 4.2. It serves as a practical tool for assessing SDG Indicator 4.2.1 (“Proportion of children under 5 years of age who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being”).
• Implied Indicator: Generation of disaggregated data on child development.
  • Explanation: The article states that the GSED is “applicable across different cultures and contexts” and will help identify “children at greater risk.” This implies that the data collected can be broken down by various demographic and socioeconomic factors. This disaggregated data serves as an indicator for Target 10.2, as it allows for the measurement of developmental gaps between different groups, thereby tracking progress in reducing inequalities.
• Implied Indicator: Comprehensive assessment of developmental domains.
  • Explanation: The article specifies that the GSED covers “cognitive, socioemotional, language, and motor skills.” The measurement and monitoring of these specific domains serve as a composite indicator for the holistic well-being of a child, contributing to the broader goals of Target 3.2. A child who is on track across these domains is more likely to be healthy and thrive.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: paho.org