Building partnerships to expand Childcare Services: The ILO experience in Ungheni Municipality

The leaflet showcases the ILO’s integrated approach to expanding quality and accessible childcare services through partnerships at the local level. It highlights the ILO initiative, supported by the Government of Switzerland, across six growth-pole municipalities, with Ungheni as the first pilot location. The leaflet also underscores the importance of assessing childcare demand and supply and developing a local roadmap to inform evidence-based planning. It highlights that childcare for children under three cannot rely on a single service format. Local authorities need a mix of options: public nursery expansion, home-based nurseries, employer-supported childcare, flexible or part-time services and extended-hours care.

The Ungheni experience demonstrates how coordinated partnerships can create sustainable childcare systems that support decent work, gender equality, and inclusive local development. The initiative strengthened local leadership, women’s entrepreneurship, employer engagement and evidence-based planning, providing a model that can be adapted and replicated across Moldova and beyond.