Roger Federer supports the Act For Early Years campaign

In an incredible career, Swiss tennis star Roger Federer dominated the sport for years and won 20 Grand Slam titles. As a champion for early education, his foundation has reached more than 2.4 million children.

Now Roger is supporting the Act For Early Years campaign – a growing global movement calling for urgent action and investment to give every child the best start in life.

In a new video, Roger – father of two sets of twins – makes a plea for others to join Act For Early Years, which was launched by Theirworld earlier this year. He appears with Ceren Yürümez – one of our Global Youth Ambassadors (GYAs) – and says: “Millions of children around the world aren’t getting the care and education they need. It’s time to Act For Early Years.”

Watch the film below

More than half of the world’s young children are missing out on crucial early childhood care and pre-primary education. That’s why Theirworld launched Act For Early Years.

The campaign is driving government leaders, experts, businesses, celebrity champions and activists to work together to solve the early years crisis.

We’re delighted that Roger is bringing his considerable reputation and expertise to the campaign.

Twenty years ago, he launched the Roger Federer Foundation, which has invested more than $28.5 million in educational programmes in southern Africa and his native Switzerland.

It currently supports school readiness programmes in Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Switzerland.

Last month, Theirworld and Roger co-hosted an event during the United Nations General Assembly in New York, at which he called for action on early years learning.

He said: “It is so important because 90% of brain development is happening before five years old and we know early learning has a problem with under-funding. That got me so motivated into learning myself and advocating, giving myself to that cause.”

Roger said that when he started the foundation in 2003, he knew little about early childhood education. He revealed that having four children had helped him to develop a better understanding of the needs and development of young children.

Roger said he and his family visited Lesotho recently to see the foundation’s work. He added: “We really try to have systemic change, to make sure as many children as possible can go to school and have quality early learning.

“We believe that if we give them a chance, things are going to be better. But education doesn’t get the funding it deserves.”

In the new Act For Early Years film, Roger highlights the vital role of Theirworld’s network of 2,000 Global Youth Ambassadors from more than 120 countries in the campaign.

GYA Ceren, from Turkey, said: “Having access to quality early childhood care and access to healthcare services and education gave me a good start in education and success later in school and in life. Now I am working to see that every child gets the best start in life.”