Lieve Fransen, MD, PhD, is director responsible for Europe 2020: Social Policies in Directorate-General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission. She first got involved in VV as a member of the jury of the King Baudouin Foundation Development Prize, for whom she conducted a site visit of Video Volunteers in 2008.

Since mid-November 2011, Dr. Lieve Fransen has devoted herself to promoting social justice and the values of solidarity in the context of Europe 2020 Strategy. The mission of her team is to improve and modernize social protection systems and develop policies to combat poverty and exclusion of disadvantaged groups. The directorate of Dr Fransen enhances stakeholders' involvement, partnership with civil society and other institutional actors in order to achieve together better governance practices both at national and at European level.

Before starting work at Directorate-General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Dr. Fransen was the Director in charge of Commission Representations in Directorate-General Communication. Her ex-directorate is responsible for the conception and realisation of the information and communication policy of EU in cooperation with the other Institutions and the Member States, for the coordination of the activities of the Commission Representations in the Member States and for political reporting.

Dr. Lieve Fransen was also the Head of Human Development, Social Cohesion and Employment Unit for the European Commission’s Directorate-General Development, and was the Vice-Chair of the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM). During a distinguished career in international public health, Dr. Fransen has worked as Public Health Advisor to the Ministry of Health, Mozambique; as Task Manager of a research programme on pregnant women and new-borns in Rwanda; and as Director of a research programme on sexual and reproductive health in Kenya. Dr. Fransen was the founder and Director of the AIDS Task Force of the European Commission from 1987-1993 and has since worked within the Development Directorate of the European Commission. She is the author or co-author of over 100 peer-reviewed publications and of numerous policy documents and reports to the European Council and Parliament.

Dr. Fransen is Medical Doctor with a PhD on Social Policies. She was awarded the National Order of the Lion of the Republic of Senegal in 1991 and the Jonathan Mann Award in 2001 for special merit on Human Rights and Health.