ABOUT GOOD RETURN

Good Return's mission is to enable those living in poverty to achieve economic empowerment through responsible financial inclusion and capability development. We do this by engaging with partners across the Asia Pacific, where two-thirds of the world’s poor live. We help them deliver better financial services and economic opportunities to those living in poverty.

Our work focuses on promoting responsible inclusive finance, building financial capability & consumer empowerment, and providing access to credit through our micro lending platform and impact investment programming to support SMEs in the agricultural sector. 

Good Return is the registered business name of World Education Australia, an Australian Aid accredited agency and member of the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID). We hold Australia Financial Services License granted by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Visit www.goodreturn.org.au for more information.

ABOUT OUR PARTNERS

We have been working in partnership with various Financial Service Providers across the Asia Pacific Region since 2010. Our current partners are located in Cambodia, Indonesia, PNG, Nepal, Philippines, Myanmar, Solomon Islands,  Fiji, Tonga, and Australia.

Our partnerships are based on a shared mission to provide responsible and inclusive financial services to people living in poverty as well as build the financial capability of consumers. 

Our microfinance partners are committed to improving their social performance management systems, which include implementing the seven client protection principles.

Please visit our website (www.goodreturn.org.au) for further information on our partners.

About the Project

In the ASEAN region, Cambodia has one of the lowest levels of financial inclusion with 30.5% of the adult population excluded from the financial system (UNCDF, “Cambodia Financial Inclusion Mobile Tracker Survey 2021”). To improve financial inclusion, building financial literacy from a young age is crucial. Recognising the importance of this, the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS) have been working together with local and international stakeholders since 2017 on the project, “Financial Education in the Cambodian School Curriculum”, which aims to integrate financial literacy into relevant subjects including mathematics, life skills, moral civics, home economics, and social studies. 

In 2024, the project is now beginning Phase 3, Year 1. It will be managed by Good Return, working in partnership with World Education, a division of JSI Research and Training Institute, Inc., to achieve the project goals of the NBC and MoEYS and liaise with key stakeholders. It is part of an anticipated three-year project to embed financial education into the Cambodian school curriculum for grades 5-12. It builds on Phase 1, which identified the priority subjects, grades & topics for financial education, and developed the Implementation Roadmap. Phase 2 then integrated financial education into the curriculum for grades 4 and 7. By the end of Phase 3, Year 1, financial literacy will be embedded into the Cambodian school curriculum for grades 5, 8, and 11.

Scope of position

The Financial Education Officer primarily supports the implementation of the “Financial Education in the Cambodian School Curriculum Project”, working in partnership with key relevant stakeholders, in particular, the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS) under the technical support from Good Return and World Education. S/He should have an interest in designing fun and engaging financial literacy materials for young people, working closely on the design and contextualisation of these materials, and ensuring all the designed materials, resources, and contents of financial literacy are embedded into the national curriculum for primary school and secondary school, compiling the financial literacy student guides and teacher manuals. The financial guides are used to educate Cambodians about managing money and their financial consumer rights and responsibilities from a young age and help them to build smart money skills for their future while the teacher manuals support teachers in financial literacy so that they are capable of teaching their students. This position will work closely on the pilot implementation of the student textbooks with teachers and students in 12 schools. This position also has scope to work on other financial literacy activities at Good Return and with partner organizations as needed - this person should demonstrate an enthusiasm for designing and engaging others with learning about personal money management.

RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Understanding of the Cambodian financial literacy situation in the education sector (15%)

• Lead the identification of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the current Cambodia financial literacy situation and propose some key recommendations 
• Support the project team to seek a clear understanding of the national curriculum of primary school and secondary school, in particular, the subjects of 1- Mathematics; 2- Life Skill; 3-Social Studies; 4- Moral Civics and 5- Home Economics
• Ensure all the existing financial guides and teacher manuals are available in Khmer and English, including translation where needed

KPIs

1. The detailed information (SWOT) of the financial literacy situation in the current textbooks​ has been developed.  
2. Financial Literacy guides and teacher manuals of grade 7 are translated from Khmer to English.

2. Development of the financial literacy content, materials, and resources  (35%)

• Support the project team in collecting all kinds of data related to financial literacy, identifying the relevant contents for the relevant subjects and grade levels in primary school and secondary school.
• Support the project team in analyzing the data and designing the materials and resources based on the financial literacy contents for relevant grade levels in primary school and secondary school, working closely with the lead of Good Return’s Financial Education Technical Advisor.
• Support the materials to be contextually appropriate for Cambodia. 
• Provide strong support for testing developed materials and resources with students and teachers. 

KPIs

1. Key financial literacy contents have been identified for all the subjects mentioned above in grade 5,6, 8,9, 10, 11 and 12
2. Financial literacy guides for students and teacher manuals have been developed for all the subjects mentioned above in grade 5,6, 8,9, 10, 11 and 12

3. Building capacity of teachers to ensure that they are capable to teach the financial literacy concepts to their students  (25%)

• Work with the project team in designing the Trainer Preparation Workshops, including contents, materials, and resources
• Under the guidance of the World Education Cambodian Curriculum Specialist and Training Officer, conduct the Trainer Preparation Workshops to ensure that Trainers are ready to train the pilot teachers and provide the logistic support needed. 
• Support the training of teachers. 
• Provide field support for teachers in piloting financial literacy session deliveries for their students.   

KPIs

1. All the materials and resources for the Trainer Preparation Workshops and building capacity of teachers have been developed
2. 80% of the teachers, who participate in teacher training are capable to teach their students about the financial literacy sessions of all subjects mentioned above in grades 5, 6, 8,9,10,11, and 12    

4. Project Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (10%)

• Support project team and MEL Specialist to implement the MEL framework, testing, and data collection and provide insight on the current project. 

• Contribute to the development of evaluation reports. 

• Coordinate to conduct regular monitoring and updating of all project progress together with the World Education team. 

• Coordinate to promote and disseminate the key lessons learned among project partners and key stakeholders.

KPIs

1. Contribution to high-quality data collection and MEL reports developed for all implementing partners
2. Coordination support for monitoring and evaluation activities including field travel and translation support as needed 

5. Other duties assigned by supervisor (15%)

• Good Return social inclusion
• Strengthening relationship and generating the possible partnership with all GR’s potential partners in Cambodia 
• Support on other financial literacy activities as needed
• Other office operation

KPIs

1. Well understanding of Good Return's social inclusion strategy and contributing to the social inclusion environment in the organization.
2. Demonstrated good collaboration within Good Return and with partner organizations on financial literacy activities as needed.
3. Maintain good relationship and partnership with all partners of Good Return in Cambodia  

SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES

Essential

• A passion and personal commitment to working towards a world free of absolute poverty
• Cambodian national, fluent in Khmer, with a high level in written and spoken English
• 5+ years experience in providing financial literacy capacity for Cambodian people through  training or non-formal education in organisational and community level.
• 3 years experience in developing training curriculum and training materials and resources for young people in Cambodia
• Ability and experience in working in partnership, particularly managing training programs or learning interventions with multiple partners (governmental institutions and NGOs)
• Experience in design / development and delivery of training or educational curriculum utilising interactive and participatory methodologies and techniques.
• Passion and commitment to support others learn and adopt new ways of doing things
• Ability and willingness to travel within Cambodia.

Desirable (optional)

• Social inclusion knowledge and experience - Gender, Disability inclusion, etc.
• Experience using and supporting digital technology, including developing digital learning (eLearning) content, tablet- and mobile- apps, digital data collection (e.g. ODK).
• Field research and data collection, such as facilitation of focus group discussions, interviews or surveys.

Applications can be submitted by selecting the 'I'm interested' link below. Provide your Cover Letter and CV addressing how you meet the criteria for the position. Cover letters can be written in the message section or uploaded together with a CV file.

For further information about Good Return, visit: www.goodreturn.org

Please indicate how you heard about this position. 

Enquiries can be directed via the Good Return website https://goodreturn.org.au/contact/

Applications close: 25 February 2024. Please apply as soon as possible. Applications will be reviewed continually. 

Location:  Regional office, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Willing to travel up to 50% of the time.

Level of effort: Full time for 1 year, with possibility for extension

Additional notes: 

• Good Return is an inclusive organisation. We strive to build a team that truly represents our diverse society and those of the Asia-Pacific communities we operate in. We actively encourage all applicants, regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, disability, and sexuality, to apply. If you require adjustments to the recruitment or interview process to accommodate your specific needs, let us know and we will try to provide them.
• Good Return is a child-safe organisation. Our recruitment processes reflect our commitment to the protection of children from abuse; successful candidates will need to comply with our Child Protection Policy and undergo pre-employment checks.