Governance Reform and Partnership Specialist

Position description

BRAC is one of the world’s largest development organizations, dedicated to empowering people living in poverty. Working across 12 countries in South Asia and Africa, BRAC touches the lives of more than 120 million people worldwide. BRAC takes a holistic approach to alleviating poverty with programs that include microfinance, education, healthcare, food security programs, and more.

About the Ultra-Poor Graduation Initiative

The Ultra-Poor Graduation Initiative (“UPGI”) is a global unit of BRAC that was founded in 2016 to build off of the success of BRAC’s Ultra-Poor Graduation program in Bangladesh. BRAC UPGI aims to position the Graduation approach as a key driver to eradicating extreme poverty worldwide. It does this by:

• Advocating for uptake of the Graduation approach by policymakers, national governments, multilateral institutions, and non-governmental organizations; and
• Effective adaptation and implementation of the Graduation approach in countries around the world, supported through technical assistance and capacity strengthening for external stakeholders.

In 2018, BRAC Ultra-Poor Graduation Initiative (BRAC UPGI) partnered with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to implement its own Graduation approach pilot project, which served more than 1,200 participants in Negros Occidental. The project successfully built on existing government programs, including the social assistance provided through Pantawid Pamilya and the income-generating activities of the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP). The results of the pilot project showed that the combination of individual livelihoods and group coaching is the optimal configuration of Graduation programming for government implementation.

In 2021, BRAC UPGI partnered with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to launch the Padayon SLP project, which served around 3,000 participants across the provinces of Iloilo, Bukidnon, and Sultan Kudarat. The project aimed to improve different aspects of wellbeing of participating households including income, savings, financial management skills, food security, nutrition, health and hygiene behavior, and access to local resources. The project successfully built on two existing government programs, the Sustainable Livelihood Program and Pantawid Pamilya, with Graduation additions to provide participant households with a comprehensive and sequenced set of interventions and strengthen social protection and economic inclusion of those living in poverty.

About the Opportunity

BRAC International’s Ultra-Poor Graduation Initiative (“UPGI”) was founded to build off the success of BRAC’s Ultra-Poor Graduation program in Bangladesh. BRAC UPGI aims to position the Graduation approach as a key driver to eradicate extreme poverty worldwide. It does this by:

• Advocating for uptake of the Graduation approach by policymakers, national governments, multilateral institutions, and non-governmental organizations; and
• Effective adaptation and implementation of the Graduation approach in countries around the world, supported through technical assistance and capacity strengthening for external stakeholders.

BRAC UPGI seeks to hire a Governance Reform and Partnership Specialist to support the engagement with DOLE National and Regional Offices scheduled in April to May 2025. The activity aims to:

• To finalize the graduation roll-out implementation arrangements
• To secure commitment from the regional offices on the timeline of the implementation of the graduation roll-out
• To formulate strategies and actions points in order to met the set deadline of delivery some livelihood assets to beneficiaries by June 2025
• To strengthen the bond and rapport of the BRAC team with regional offices and central office

Primary Responsibilities/ Deliverables:

Under the guidance of the BRAC UPGI Programme Director or the incumbent Acting Officer in Charge, the Governance Reform and Partnership Specialist is expected to undertake the following tasks/activities:

• Prior to the day of the meeting:
  • join pre-meeting discussions with the BRAC and DOLE central office team
  • provide guidance to the finalization of the concept note, program and agenda
  • identify key persons that should be invited to participate in the meeting
• During the meeting:
  • guide the discussions of each agenda identified by the team
  • solicit action points and next steps for each of the agenda items
• After the meeting:
  • participate the debrief with the BRAC team and possibly the DOLE Central Office team
  • provide inputs to the BRAC team on how to follow-through with the regions the next steps and action points
  • provide guidance on the BRAC team on the resolution of any issue that may arise during the meeting

Qualifications

The Governance Reform and Partnership Specialist shall have the following qualifications:

• at least 10 years of prior experience working with the government on a senior leadership position (at least bureau director level)
• Familiarity with DOLE mandate, existing programs, and management with its regional offices is a key,
• Knowledge about the Graduation Approach is preferred

Selection Criteria:

The Consultant will be selected based on the following criteria:

1. Qualifications and Experience
2. Able to perform the tasks/activities according to the agreed timeline

Timeline:

The activity duration will cover the months of April to May 2025 that will include technical consultation with DOLE as well as hybrid sessions with DOLE national and regional staff. Pre and post meeting activities with BRAC, for a total of 2 person-days will form part of the preparation and documentation of the activity. The consultant shall be engaged for a total of five (5) person days to complete the assigned tasks., including 2 days for pre and post meetings and/or consultation activity and 3 days for the actual session.

Application instructions

Please email your resume and detailed cover letter with required professional fees to [email protected].

Application deadline: The application deadline is April 18, 2025.

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