Banyan

In Thailand, children face serious public health challenges: 32% of children under age four suffer from anemia, and 48% have iron deficiency, which can lead to cognitive and physical underdevelopment. These issues are especially prevalent among children from low-income families, who also face limited access to quality early childhood care and education.

There is a lack of daycare centers for children aged 6 months to 3 years and existing facilities often lack a focus on nutrition and development. This contributes to long-term social inequality and limits children’s chances to thrive.

With the support of Danone Ecosystem, Dumex, Nutricia, Holt International, and the National Council for Child and Youth Development (NCYD), the BANYAN project was co-created to provide a network of sustainable and qualitative Day Care Centers (DCCs) for children from low-income families.

The program embeds proper nutrition, hydration, and cognitive stimulation during the first 1,000 days of life—both in daycare centers and at home—through education and coaching by trained Community Health Workers (CHWs). It also trains caregivers, parents, and health professionals to improve knowledge and practices around early childhood nutrition and development.

BANYAN is built on a hybrid financing model, where revenue from complementary activities (such as parent fees, partnerships, and accessible nutrition products) helps sustain the daycare centers. The project also creates jobs, enables mothers to work, and engages government stakeholders to support long-term replication and scale-up.