National Project Coordinator - NOB (DC)

Introduction

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is committed to advancing decent work opportunities for women and men in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. The ILO Country Office for Bangladesh (CO-Dhaka) is implementing two mutually reinforcing development cooperation projects to extend social protection coverage to all workers, including migrant workers and their families: (i) “Advancing Universal Social Insurance for Workers in Bangladesh”, a three-year project funded by UNDP and DFAT (Australia) under SSPS Programme, which will build upon the previous phase of developing ‘NSIS Roadmap’ in 2025-26, and will help Bangladesh move from a policy commitment to social insurance towards an operational national system, so that women and men workers and their families are protected against unemployment, employment injury, sickness and maternity-related loss of income. (ii) “STREAM – Extending Social Protection to Migrant Workers and Their Families in the South Asia–Gulf Corridor”, supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), is a multi-country programme covering Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and the GCC countries that aims to ensure that migrant workers and their families can access social protection, in law and in practice, through policy reform, improved access to benefits, and dialogue and coordination across the corridor.

The two projects reinforce each other. The national social insurance system provides the platform through which Bangladeshi workers, including migrant workers, and their families can be covered at all stages of their work. The National Project Coordinator will ensure coherent delivery of both projects in Bangladesh.

Reporting Line

Under the overall guidance and supervision of the Director of the ILO Country Office for Bangladesh, and the direct supervision of the CTA / Project Manager of the social insurance project, the National Project Coordinator will be responsible for the day-to-day coordination, implementation, monitoring, and reporting of the social insurance project. The incumbent will work in close coordination with the Senior Programme Officer of CO-Dhaka, relevant government ministries, employers’ and workers’ organizations, development partners, and key stakeholders.

For STREAM, the incumbent will report substantively to the STREAM Technical Social Protection and Migration Officer for South Asia as a secondary reporting line, who will provide day-to-day technical guidance and oversight in coordination with the STREAM Programme Manager. The incumbent will work closely with the STREAM M&E and Programme Officers and the National Project Coordinators in other STREAM countries.

Technical backstopping will be provided by DWT/CO-New Delhi and by SOCPRO and MIGRANT at headquarters.

Description of Duties

1. Project Delivery

• Operational Management: Manage the operational delivery of the projects, including multi-year workplans, budget management, procurement, contracting of service providers, and quality-assurance of technical outputs.

• Overall Coordination: Coordinate the overall planning, day-to-day implementation, and risk management of the projects, including with relevant UN agencies, social partners and other stakeholders.

• Demonstration Interventions: Coordinate the design and execution of project activities ensuring key learnings are documented for potential national scale-up.

2. Policy Support

• Research and Evidence: Coordinate context analysis, evidence generation and policy research to inform the design and implementation of the activities of both projects, including social security-related policy and legislation, governance mechanisms, financial management and ensuring sustainable financing, access to social insurance including digitalization, with particular attention to women, persons with disabilities and migrant workers.
• Social Insurance Framework Development: Provide technical and coordination support for strengthening the institutional, governance, legal and regulatory frameworks for national social insurance, including institutional roles and coordination mechanisms, operational guidelines, standard operating procedures, financing and fund management arrangements, and policy instruments to support the phased implementation of priority social insurance branches, including unemployment insurance.

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• Strategic Policy Engagement on Migrant Workers’ Social Protection: Facilitate strategic policy engagement with relevant government institutions, workers’ organizations, and other stakeholders in Bangladesh to identify priorities and pathways for extending social protection to migrant workers and their families and supporting the development of a coherent national approach that takes into account existing migrant welfare arrangements, ongoing national social protection reforms, emerging developments in social protection systems in Gulf countries, and broader regional priorities and opportunities for cross-border cooperation in South Asia.
• UN programme, facilitating joint planning, technical alignment, inter-agency coordination mechanisms, and steering committee meetings. Promote synergies and Capacity Development and Social Dialogue: Coordinate the design and implementation of capacity-development initiatives, technical workshops, evidence-based advocacy, stakeholder consultations and high-level policy dialogues to strengthen the knowledge, technical capacity and engagement of government institutions, employers’ and workers’ organizations, and other relevant stakeholders in social protection policies, reforms and implementation priorities relevant to both projects. Facilitate tripartite and inter-ministerial dialogue, peer learning and South-South knowledge exchange to build national ownership and implementation readiness.

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3. Partnership Development

• Inter-Agency & UN Coordination: Serve as the primary ILO technical focal point within the joint UN programme, facilitating joint planning, technical alignment, inter-agency coordination mechanisms, and steering committee meetings. Promote synergies and coherence with other relevant ILO initiatives, and facilitate collaboration with UN agencies and development partners working on social protection and labour migration, as relevant to the objectives and implementation of both projects.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Facilitate structured engagement, multi-stakeholder consultations, and tripartite social dialogue among government ministries and state agencies (including those responsible for labour, overseas employment and finance), employers' organizations, workers' organizations, and civil society actors.
• Resource Mobilization: Contribute to partnership development and resource mobilization initiatives, including tracking donor priorities, preparing proposal materials, and documenting investment cases for strengthening national social protection system, in line with the objectives of both projects.

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4. Knowledge Management

• Analytical Products: Lead the development of analytical knowledge products, policy briefs, lessons learned documents, and advocacy communication materials to ensure strong projects’ visibility and policy impact.

5. Monitoring and Reporting

• Results-Based Monitoring: Lead the results-based monitoring and reporting of both projects, in line with donor requirements

• Missions & Site Visits: Conduct regular project monitoring missions and site visits to track implementation progress, verify deliverables, evaluate partner performance, and engage local stakeholders. Participate in technical missions, regional consultations and other relevant activities across South Asia and the Gulf countries, as required.

Required qualifications

Education

First-level university degree in economics, public policy, social policy, development studies, social sciences, labour studies, public administration, law, or another relevant field. An advanced university degree is an advantage.

Experience

At least three years of progressively responsible professional experience at the national level in project or programme management, including work planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting, and stakeholder coordination. Experience in the social protection or labour market policy will be an added advantage. Experience with UN joint programmes and/or cross-regional multi-stakeholder initiatives, government institutions, and social partners is highly desirable.

Languages

Excellent command of Bangla and English, both written and spoken.

Competencies

• Strong project management skills, including the ability to translate strategic objectives into workplans, budgets, and deliverables.
• In-depth knowledge of results-based management, monitoring frameworks, indicators, and analytical reporting.
• Ability to analyze complex policy, institutional, and social issues and synthesize evidence into clear policy options.
• Strong understanding of national care-system development, gender equality, social protection, and decent work.
• Proven ability to build effective partnerships and coordinate government, UN agencies, social partners, and civil society.
• Demonstrated skill in facilitating tripartite dialogue, multi-stakeholder consultations, and technical negotiation.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with a track record of producing concise technical reports and policy briefs.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment and to demonstrate gender-sensitive and non-discriminatory behavior and attitudes.
• Demonstrate values for integrity and transparency, collaboration, client orientation, accountability, adaptability, and sensitivity to diversity.