Feature: Celebrity UNICEF ambassador learns from her own experiences

Chinese actor Ma Yili, 39, won applause in 2007 with the TV romance "Struggle," (Fen Dou) but chose to put her career on hold when her first baby was born in 2008.

Appointed as national ambassador of UNICEF China at the 2015 Asia-Pacific regional early childhood development conference in Beijing this week, the former thespian now prefers to talk about education, rather than feed the clamor of celebrity gossip.

"It's a great honor to take on the role of UNICEF ambassador in China, to work with the organization to improve early childhood development," she said on her appointment. "I am excited to be working with UNICEF to help ensure that every child, especially the most disadvantaged, has a fair start in life."

The conference brought together 500 delegates to share knowledge on early childhood development (ECD). ECD is about the "whole child" -- the physical, social, emotional, cognitive and linguistic development of each individual.

Ma argues that the first three years are extremely important for each child. "What they need most is a nurturing and safe home where they are given positive attention and appropriate stimulation with fun activities," she said.

"The family is always the best place to give children the earliest education," she said, but with young parents under a lot of work pressure, early education centers have begun to spring up all across the country.

Speaking of her own experiences Ma said, "Parents have to make appropriate sacrifices at appropriate times."

According to UNICEF, the first eight years of a child's life are critical to growth and development. A combination of health care, nutrition, education, protection and cognitive stimulation in this period determines the child's intellectual curiosity and social confidence, providing the foundation for navigating the world around them.

The best investment in a child's future requires a holistic approach that includes physical, mental and emotional development, said Ma.

The return on this investment does not only benefit children and their families, but has economic and social outcomes for society at large, according to Rana Flowers, UNICEF representative to China.

"Ma Yili has an incredible commitment and capacity to translate and inspire government officials, communities and parents regarding the very compelling reasons for an investment in the early years of a child's life," said Flowers.

Over the last few years, Ma has worked on a number of campaigns, reaching millions of parents and young people. She first teamed up with UNICEF in May 2013, when she was appointed special advocate for breastfeeding and early childhood development. Over the past two years, she has been actively engaged in promoting breastfeeding rooms in workplaces and public buildings, and nurturing a culture of breastfeeding.

This May, to celebrate early childhood month, Ma joined UNICEF to launch a nationwide social media campaign to educate the public about the benefits of early childhood development. Her interview with UNICEF China's ECD specialist, Chen Xuefeng, has been viewed more than 200,000 times, and the campaign page viewed 44 million times.

China has almost 300 million children, around 15 percent of the world's total. In 2010, the State Council said it would work toward ensuring all 45 million children between 3 and 6 years old have access to kindergartens. Since then, the number of children attending kindergartens has increased from just 45 percent in 2009 to over 70 percent in 2014. During this period, the central government spent 900 million U.S. dollars on preschool education.

Ma expects to take the UNICEF message into villages and rural communities. "As far as I know, 11.7 million children have been left behind in their hometowns by parents who have moved to find jobs in big cities," Ma said. Endit