This PlayMatters baseline study used the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA) to measure early learning and development outcomes among children in Ethiopia. IDELA assessed 108 children across four domains: emergent literacy, emergent numeracy, motor skills, and socio-emotional development. The study revealed an overall IDELA mean score of 56%, indicating moderate proficiency. Motor skills scored the highest (63%), while emergent literacy was the lowest (49%). Subtasks like letter identification (24%) and drawing a person (44%) highlighted areas needing targeted interventions.

Boys performed slightly better overall (58%) compared to girls (54%), with significant differences observed in numeracy and specific literacy subtasks. Host community children slightly outperformed refugee children, though differences were not statistically significant. The results provide a baseline for refining interventions under PlayMatters, emphasizing the need to address disparities by gender and community type while enhancing foundational skills in literacy and numeracy.