Resumen En America Latina y el Caribe millones de ninos viven una situacion de pobreza que los excluye de toda posibilidad de una vida digna. Este articulo presenta resultados de inves- tigaciones sobre programas dirigidos a la infancia que vive en contextos de pobreza. Objetivo: Conocer el impacto del Programa Hogares Comunitarios de Bienestar en el desarrollo de los ninos que han participado en estos programas. Materiales y metodos: Se trabajo con un diseno de comparacion entre tres grupos, un grupo experimental (ninos que asistieron al Programa Hogares de bienestar) y dos gru- pos control (ninos que asistieron a programas convencionales del Estado y ninos que no asistieron a ningun tipo de programa). Se utilizo la tabla de parametros para talla y peso del ICBF, la Escala Abreviada de Desarrollo y el registro de calificaciones. Resultados: Los ninos que participan en el Programa Hogares Comunitarios presentan un desarrollo superior a nivel cognitivo y personal social. Conclusiones: La Universidad del Norte a traves del Programa Hogares Comunitarios de Bienestar muestra que la inclusion social a partir de los primeros anos, implica darles la responsabilidad de la atencion del nino a sus familias y comunidades locales. Palabras claves: Pobreza, ninez, inclusion social, atencion integral. Abstract In Latin America and the Caribbean millions of children live in poverty which excludes them from any possibility of a dignified life. This article presents results of investigations on programs directed towards the infancy that live in contexts of poverty. Objective: Knowing the impact of the Program Communitarian Homes of Welfare in the development of the children that have participated in these programs. Material and methods: It was worked with a design of comparison among three groups, an experimental group (children that attended the welfare Homes Program) and two groups control (children that attended conventional programs of the State and children that did not attend any type of program). The board of parameters was used for size and weight of the ICBF, the Abbreviated Scale of Development and the registration of qualifications. Results: The children that participate in the Program Communitarian Homes present a supirior development at a cognitive level and social personnel. Conclusions: The Universidad del Norte through the Program Communitarian Homes of Welfare shows that the social inclusion from the first years, implies to give them the responsibility of the attention of the child to its families and local communities. Key words: Poverty, childhood, social inclusion, integral attention.