Philippines Technical and Policy Reform Lead

About the Program 

Investing in Women: Women in Inclusive Sustainable Economic Recovery (IW) is a multi-country Australian Government initiative in Southeast Asia that seeks to accelerate women’s economic empowerment through increased and equitable opportunities in the private sector, contributing to inclusive, sustainable economic recovery and growth in targeted countries. Our objective is to support women to thrive in the workplace and succeed in business.

Building on the results, partnerships, learnings and credibility established under the first eight years of the program, IW’s new phase will extend and deepen Australia’s contribution to advancing gender equality in Southeast Asia through influencing and growing an ecosystem of policymakers, business leaders, capital providers and women’s economic empowerment actors.

Positioning women at the centre of economic resilience and accelerating their economic empowerment is critical to achieving a wide range of sustainable development objectives in Southeast Asia. As the region recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, gender-sensitive economic recovery strategies will be critical to prevent further deterioration in women’s economic empowerment indicators as seen during COVID-19. Focus on an inclusive recovery seeks to harness the productivity, skills, capacity, talent, innovation, and leadership that women offer, and realise the benefits of women’s economic empowerment for themselves, their families, and their communities.

IW continues the ambitious agenda of advancing women’s economic empowerment through:

• Workstream 1: Workplace Gender Equality (WGE) – supporting Business Coalitions that work with influential businesses on shifting workplace cultures, practices, and policy barriers to achieve workplace gender equality with member companies together employing more than one million people.
  
   
• Workstream 2: Enabling Care Policy Reforms – supporting government and businesses in progressing policy change in support for women’s economic empowerment, particularly through better access to quality care services. IW works with credible local institutions to strengthen the evidence base and collective action needed to influence and inform policy reforms that supports women’s equal economic participation, particularly related to the care economy.
  
   
• Workstream 3: Campaigns and Communities of Practice – supporting locally driven campaigns that positively shift gender norms that inhibit women’s economic participation. Through fostering a community of gender equality advocates, IW will continuously build evidence that support the broader adoption of progressive attitudes and behaviours.
  
   
• Workstream 4: Gender Lens Investing – We work to increase access to capital by women-led Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) through partnering with industry players to increase capital providers’ demand for Gender Lens Investing strategies and products, catalysing the supply of financial instruments available to small businesses owned or led by women, and investing in the growth of SMEs that support women through a ‘fund of funds’ strategy.

In collaboration with corporations and business leaders, policymakers and implementers, capital providers, entrepreneurs, and advocates, we are working with those who are driving change for women's economic equality in our region.

Investing in Women supports the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 Agenda and the leveraging of private sector investments to achieve the Goals. The SDGs recognise that gender equality is not only an essential human right, but a necessary foundation for peaceful, prosperous and sustainable societies.

Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has contracted Abt Associates Australia to implement Investing in Women. Abt Associates Australia is a mission-driven, global leader in research, evaluation and implementing programs in health, social and environmental policy and international development.

Investing in Women’s new phase is anticipated to be up to AUD 80 million in value, initially for four years (from January 2023 to June 2027), with an option to extend for a further six years. Initial countries of focus will be at least Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, with some activities engaging at a regional level. Further information about Investing in Women can be found on the website: www.investinginwomen.asia.

About the Opportunity

We are seeking an individual who will ensure that IW effectively collaborates, coordinates and cooperates with multiple stakeholders, including the Australian Embassy in the Philippines, representatives of the Government of the Philippines  and a range of Filipino implementing and policy partners for strong communication and take-up of strategic opportunities to advance end-of-program outcomes.



The Philippines Technical and Policy Reform Lead will:

Client Management 

• Manage IW’s engagement with the Australian Embassy in the Philippines:  
  • Promoting and supporting strong linkages between IW and Post.
  • Provide the Embassy with current and relevant information relating to program implementation and provide entry points for enhanced knowledge sharing with other DFAT programs.
  • Work with the Embassy to identify public diplomacy opportunities to build DFAT’s private sector relationships, advance DFAT’s bilateral policy reform agendas, and create opportunities for DFAT dialogue on contemporary gender issues with key actors.
  • Support regular coordination mechanisms with DFAT Post including quarterly Country Sub-Committee Meetings, annual Staff Planning meetings, the annual review of the Philippines Country Strategy, and program reporting. 

Policy Leadership

• Develop and maintain networks with relevant policy stakeholders across the Philippines to identify potential for policy reforms impacting the care economy. 
• Work with Workstream 2 Director to develop initiatives and establish partnerships to enable policy reform impacting the care economy in the Philippines in line with IW’s Enabling Care Policy Reform Strategy, including identifying opportunities, collaborative design, procurement, contracting, negotiation and stakeholder management.
• Lead the delivery of Workstream 2 partnerships and policy interventions in the Philippines, including partnership and contract management.  
• Work with IW’s Monitoring, evaluation, learning and research (MERL) team to support the monitoring of Workstream 2 partner progress and impact assessment in the Philippines. 
• Work with the Workstream 2 Director and Technical Coherence Senior Manager to support Workstream 2 reporting of partner progress and impact in the Philippines.
• Work with the Workstream 2 Director to develop and deliver multi-country initiatives, including knowledge sharing forums.

Technical Leadership  

• Lead the development and annual review/update of IW’s country-level strategy for the Philippines, reflecting an analysis of context, stakeholders, country and regional level priorities, and synergies with other DFAT programs, in consultation with DFAT.  
• Ensure IW activities are adaptive and responsive to the Philippine country context and are delivered in line with country-level economic prospects, private sector interests, policy context and prevalent social norms.  
• Work with IW Workstream Directors to support strategic local and regional partnerships that demonstrate the links between improving the enabling environment for women’s economic participation and their empowerment, and support IW’s End of Program Outcomes (EOPOs):  
  • EOPO1 Workplace Gender Equality: More workplaces adopt and implement workplace gender equality organisational changes.
  • EOPO2 Enabling Policy Reform: Policy stakeholders are influenced by private sector perspectives and other evidence related to care economy and/or WEE.
  • EOPO3 Campaigns and Communities of Practice: More early adopters of gender equality demonstrate progressive behaviour and advocate for broader change.
  • EOPO4 Gender Lens Investing: Increase investment in businesses that disproportionately benefit women across targeted countries.
• Ensure IW complements and amplifies the relevant agendas of development actors and other key stakeholders in the Philippines, including but not limited to: UNWomen, IFC, ADB, UNESCAP, Oxfam Pilipinas.
• Support IW Workstreams and partners to identify entry points that specifically target women who experience intersecting forms of bias and disadvantage, including women with disabilities.

Employment type and location:  A citizen role, but open to others who have legal right to work in country under a local compensation package.  Based in Manila, Philippines.

Duration: 3 years, up to 30 June 2027; anticipated to commence in May 2024.

Key Selection Criteria

For your application to be considered by the Panel, interested applicants must submit a response to each of the following Key Selection Criteria (KSC):

KSC 1:     Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent in experience in development, gender studies, public policy, economics, or related fields.

KSC 2:    Track record in policy engagement and analysis, partnership management, and program management/delivery.

KSC 3:    Demonstrated knowledge or experience working on advancing gender equality, women’s economic empowerment, or care economy.

KCS 4:    Demonstrated strong engagement skills, liaising with a wide range of government, private sector, civil society, and donor organisations in the Philippines.

KSC 5:    Excellent influencing and negotiation skills, including an ability to deal with people at all levels with credibility.

KSC 6:    Excellent written and verbal communication skills, able to communicate with clarity and influence.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single requirement for a position. At Abt Associates we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you are excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every role requirement, we encourage you to apply in any case. You may be just the right candidate for this or for other roles.

How to Apply

We are an equal opportunity employer and encourage applications from experienced and capable women.

Please submit your application online (copy this link to apply: https://egpy.fa.us2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/JoinAbt/job/104843/?utm_medium=jobshare

Upload your cover letter, CV and response to the KSCs.  Submit your CV and KSC response as a single Word or PDF document, and address how you meet the requirements of this role. We are unable to proceed with an application without the KSC statements.

Closing Date:  10 March 2024, Sunday  

About Us

Abt Associates is a mission-driven, global leader with a proven track record in complex program implementation in the international development sector. We offer bold solutions and technical excellence in Health, Economic Growth, Governance, Research & Evaluation, Environment & Energy, Gender Equality & Social Inclusion. Working with our many partners, we have driven measurable social impact for more than 55 years, to achieve our mission of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people worldwide. We operate in remote and challenging environments and employ more than 3,700 staff in over 50 countries. For more information about us and what we do, visit our website at www.abtassociates.com

Equity

Abt Associates values individuality and celebrates difference with a strong commitment to diversity, equality, racial equity, gender, and disability inclusion. We strongly encourage people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to apply for this position. We offer flexible work arrangements and a culturally safe environment for staff members from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Safeguarding

We are deeply committed to safeguarding, to protect and prevent harm and abuse to individuals we work for and who work for us. Our recruitment and selection procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation. We will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, child abuse, sexual abuse or exploitation in any form, and expect everyone to be treated with respect and dignity.