About the Event

In this talk, Dr. Yan Mu will first provide an overview on how the Chinese government plans, finances, and governs the delivery of essential social services for children and families in China, including primary health care, early childhood development, education, social protection, and child protection. After probing into the major challenges that exist in China’s child services, Dr. Mu will introduce how UNICEF has been engaging with the Chinese government in addressing some aspects of the challenges in order for children and families, including the most vulnerable ones, to access affordable and quality essential services.

About the Speaker

Yan MU is the Public Partnership Manager for the East Asia and Pacific Region with UNICEF New York Headquarters. She was the Economic Policy Specialist in UNICEF China Office for more than a decade before moving to the current role. She holds a Bachelor’s (B.Sc) Degree in Economics from Nankai University in China, a Master’s Degree (MSc.) in Development Economics from University of Manchester in the UK, and a Ph.D. in Economics (Public Economics Specialty) from China Research Academy of Fiscal Sciences.

Dr. Mu has worked for over 15 years in the areas of economic and social policy and development programming, in China and other countries. In her 12 years with UNICEF (based in China mostly, but also on various work assignments such as to the India office, East Asia and Pacific Regional Office in Bangkok and New York Headquarters), Dr. Mu’s work has focused on promoting inclusive social policy and planning and financing for essential social services for children through partnership with government, other international organizations, and think-tank and academic institutions. Her pre-UNICEF career involved working for the Ministry of Finance in China as a policy analyst and advisor on policy topics of macroeconomics, fiscal and income redistribution policies, and international finance and trade. She also served as a consultant for UNDP on pro-poor and inclusive fiscal reforms.

Dr. Mu has a range of professional expertise areas. She publishes working papers and journal articles on macroeconomic and fiscal policies, health financing, government expenditures, political economy, intergovernmental fiscal transfers, income distribution, and other economic topics. She has also accumulated analytical and advisory knowledge and program experience on fiscal space analysis for essential social services.