"Responsive caregiving" refers to the ability to observe, understand, and respond to a child's signals in a timely and appropriate manner, and is linked to improved psycho-social, cognitive, and physical outcomes in children. Athena Infonomics, in collaboration with FATE Consulting Ltd. and under the guidance of UNICEF Rwanda, recently conducted an end-line evaluation for the second phase of a programme entitled "Transforming the Lives of Children in Rwanda (ECD&F)," executed between 2014 and 2020.

During the evaluation, the team utilized the Observation of Mother-Child Interaction (OMCI) tool to assess caregiver-child interactions in vulnerable households in Rwanda. The OMCI tool is used to capture reliable and valid measurements of parental sensitivity and responsiveness, especially in low- and middle-income countries.

This is one of the few studies utilizing OMCI to understand how responsive caregiving affects child development across cultural and socioeconomic contexts, and contributes to research that supports positive parenting as a way of improving potential early childhood development (ECD) outcomes in resource-constrained environments.