Dr. Caryn Bredenkamp is Lead Economist and Program Leader for Human Development for Eastern Europe, and is based in Kyiv, Ukraine. In this role, she coordinates the World Bank’s program in the health, education, and social protection sectors in these three countries, and leads key sectoral dialogue with government counterparts, civil society and development partners.
Since joining the World Bank in 2006, Caryn has worked on a number of complex sectoral reform programs and lending activities in human development across diverse client countries in Eastern Europe, South Asia, Africa, and East Asia. She has worked most extensively in Vietnam and the Philippines (both countries where she completed field-based assignments), India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar. Her expertise lies in health sector reforms that enhance efficiency and sustainability, improve financial protection, and promote equity, and in bringing together multisectoral interventions to improve human capital outcomes.
Caryn holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy (Health Economics) from the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill (USA), a Master’s degree in Economics and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Stellenbosch (South Africa), and post-graduate qualifications in demography and international health. Her publications include more than 20 peer-reviewed journal articles and books. Prior to joining the World Bank, Caryn worked as a lecturer in Economics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.