PSEBE Specialist

POSITION TITLE:               Private Sector Engagement, Business, and Employment Specialist (National Position)

PROGRAM:                         USAID Laos Counter Trafficking in Persons (CTIP) Project

LOCATION:                         Vientiane Capital, Laos

REPORTS TO:                     Chief of Party

POSITION SUMMARY:

Winrock International implements USAID Laos Counter Trafficking in Persons (Laos CTIP) Project to reduce the vulnerability to human trafficking among target populations in Lao PDR by supporting prevention of human trafficking through advocacy, institutional capacity building at different levels, and empowerment of at-risk populations; and protection of TIP survivors and at-risk populations by strengthening the service provisions since 2017. Laos CTIP will continue to implement the project until mid-2027.

Private Sector Engagement, Business, and Employment Specialist will take a lead in creating the partnership with private sector stakeholders for training /internships /job opportunities to enhance economic empowerment of identified survivors/suspected survivors of human trafficking and parents and guardians of at-risk children; support identified survivors/suspected survivors starting a small business; and to build the capacity of the private sectors for awareness on TIP prevention and primary screening of TIP victims.

Essential Responsibilities:

Partnership building

• In coordination with Protection and Livelihood Support Specialist (PLSS), take a lead on private sector partnerships, and strategize how to advance the private sector engagement component;
• Analyze the private sector mapping repots previously conducted by Laos CTIP and other relevant documents to find the entry point for private sector engagement, map out the potential locations and companies, and develop a private sector engagement strategy for Phase 2;
• Identify private sector partners with internship /job /income opportunities (shops, private sector, or any potential employer/market), in particular in tourism sector, or special economic zone and establish firm partnerships with several companies in 1-2 provinces.
• Build partnerships and collaborative alliances with business associations, chamber of commerce at center and provincial levels, cooperatives, or potential projects implemented by other organizations that can be linked to Laos CTIP’s target beneficiaries for their economic empowerment initiatives;
• In collaborate and join meetings with PSE of Asia CTIP and applying new technic to local context;
• Establish the engagement process with the private sector (for example roster system for jobs and internships; or terms and conditions) to make sure that all the parties agree;

Business start-up support

• In coordination with PLSS, review the business start-up and financial literacy training curriculum/tools and finalize/update as necessary.
• Provide business start-up training and financial literary training to the TIP survivor / suspected survivor who participated in the vocational/livelihood training, as necessary.
• Train/mentor Field Officers on the business start-up training module.
• As necessary, assess market trends and linkages in the provincial/district context to inform and link with the interests of TIP survivor/suspected survivors who wish to start a business.
• In coordination with PLSS, analyze the interests of the survivors/ suspected survivors for economic empowerment and connect them with the job opportunities or potential business, and navigate them to the feasible options. Support reviewing their business plan, provide advice, and monitor the progress of their business.
• In coordination with MEL Team, develop systems/tools to accurately record, track and monitor the information/data the beneficiaries;
• In coordination with MEL Team and PLSS, ensure the data of the individual beneficiary/participant is accurately recorded in the Laos CTIP forms periodically and submit to the MEL system. Support MEL Team to validate the data.

Awareness Raising and Screening and others

• In coordination with Communications Officer, and SBCC Specialist, review the existing IEC materials for private sector and tourism, and contribute to revising/developing additional IEC materials.
• Train identified Private Sector partners on TIP awareness, their roles for identification of ref flags, victims screening, and national referral mechanism.
• Provide technical support to all the Field Officers and supervise one of the assigned Field Officers to guide and mentor him/her ensuring activities at the field level are implemented towards the goal of Laos CTIP.
• Ensure that the data entry of individual beneficiary/participant in the relevant activity is recorded in the relevant forms and submitted. Closely work with MEL Team in validating data and preparing a note to file in case an error occur before uploading data in MIS system.
• Contribute to the development of Laos CTIP strategy, work plans, and technical deliverables;
• Work as team-work and support other team members where activities are linked and need support based on needed and priority.
• There will be requested to travel from time to time based on activities.
• Other duties as assigned by COP/DCOP.

Qualifications:

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, economics, international development, social science, or relevant field;

Work Experience and skills:

• At least five years of work experience in private sector engagement, value chain development, marketing, micro and small business enterprises, partnership engagement, and other relevant areas for private sector engagement, and business start-up;

• Experience in developing partnerships with different businesses including large and small firms, small shops, and business associations; and engagement in Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) is desirable:
• Demonstrated understanding, skills and experience for capacity building of vulnerable populations starting up a micro and small business, including provision of business training;
• Understanding of the situation and capacity of the economically and socially vulnerable people;
• Excellent communication and outreach skills.
• Strong oral and written communication skills in Lao and English languages.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities under pressure and meet tight deadlines.
• Good command of computer skills including MS Office software (excel, word, outlook, power point);
• Ability to work independently
• Experience in working with at-risk populations and survivors of human trafficking is desirable.

HOW TO APPLY:

Qualified candidates should apply via e-mail to: LaosCTIPJobs@winrock.org, indicating only “Private Sector Engagement, Business, and Employment Specialist” in the subject line, before the end of Monday, October 29, 2024. The e-mail should contain your CV, cover letter, and three professional references. Winrock will only contact candidates qualified for the position.