Financial Inclusion Field Support Officer Volunteer

FSO Program Objectives 

The objectives of the Field Support Officer (FSO) Volunteer Program are for FSOs to: 

• Gain valuable experience living and working in a developing country as part of a professional team
• Assist with the implementation of Good Return and partner objectives and specific programs 
• Strengthen relationships with partners by enhancing communication and coordination 
• Support Good Returns communications and marketing

The FSO Program has enabled previous volunteers to build their careers in the international development sector with a number now in paid roles both in Australia and overseas.

Assignment objectives  

The assignment objectives of the Financial Inclusion FSO are to provide support to the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) the government financial regulator on a number of national financial awareness multimedia campaigns financial literacy and research projects. Good Return has partnered with the NBC since 2015 supporting financial inclusion and financial education including codelivering the Lets Talk Money! Consumer Awareness Campaign in 2016 and the Lets Talk Money: Little by Little Campaign in 2022 the 321 Financial Literacy phone service comic books and the NBCEdu App an engaging childrens financial education app. 

A key focus of this role is to support the achievement of Cambodia country strategy goals in the areas of financial capability development and inclusive finance through joint activities between Good Return and the National Bank of Cambodia. In particular this role will support Good Return and NBCs current exciting loan comic project that is now in the stage of turning one comic into a video alongside other financial inclusion projects. 

The top complaints received by the NBC hotlines are about loans which indicates an issue in Cambodia where consumers do not fully understand how to apply for or manage loans safely and responsibly. The objective of these comics is for consumers to have a better understanding of their rights and responsibilities when taking out loans how to protect themselves from illegal/informal lending practices and improve their digital financial literacy. It also aims to support the implementation of the Royal Government of Cambodias National Financial Inclusion Strategyso that all Cambodians have improved understanding of money management and can access financial services successfully according to their needs. So far three stories have been written by NBC and Good Return with two of the three stories having been graphicdesigned into mini comic books. Also Good Return team and NBC team completed  the field testing with public audiences  for feedback on the comics and their impact so this role will support NBC in creating a distribution plan finding sponsors for turning the final story into a mini comic book and refine and scale up the comics to videos or a larger project/campaign to reach a wider audience. This position will also support the NBC team for developing other financial literacy projects/campaigns to increase digital financial literacy avoiding any scams or frauds due to limited digital financial knowledge and experiences in particular among laborers and factory workers. 

Another key focus of the role will be to support the NBCs priority for seeking the opportunity for setting up the savings mobilisation project in Cambodia.  A national survey on financial inclusion in 2015 indicated very low levels of formal savings in Cambodia. Only 11 of the survey respondents voluntarily save in formal institutions such as banks cooperatives or microfinance institutions while 56 of Cambodians were not saving at all. NBC and Good Return are jointly pursuing funding for a research project that aims to help stakeholders and policymakers understand better the financial needs of target groups (such as women entrepreneurs) particularly their savings behaviours and preparation for financial shocks. The results of the action research would be used to inform the recommendations on improving national policies and implement other measures like general financial product features or marketing/campaigns in Cambodia to expand access and usage of formal savings products for target groups.

RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Financial Literacy Consumer Protection & Training Activities 40  

• Support NBC team to move the loan comic project implementation forwards adjusting the workplan printing loan comics turning one comic into a video distribution funding and scaling up for NBC and Good Returns loan comics into a largerscale project/campaign. 
• Support NBC and Good Return team for creating the opportunity of developing a new national financial literacy campaign Lets Talk Money Campaign phase 3. 
• Support NBC and Good Return team for the campaign implementation including designing materials distributing and promoting materials and tracking the progress of the implementation. 
• Participate in financial literacy activities with target users and collect communications materials which may include events such as:
• Microfinance Institution awareness conference conducted every 2 months (or based on availability) in Khmer language including local authorities in those areas;
• ASEAN Saving Day;
• Financial Literacy Day;
• Other conferences or workshops for the NBC and/or Good Return;
• Work with Good Returns partners to develop social media strategies schedules and content to promote financial literacy campaigns.
• Support as needed on policy development and research related to consumer protection and financial literacy. 
• Contribute to womens economic empowerment initiatives and activities.

2. Monitoring Evaluation & Research 30

• Work with Good Returns partners to monitor and evaluate financial literacy activities including contributing to the evaluation of the loan comic project which may include field work data analysis and report writing. 
• Contributing to the desk research design and field work research implementation (surveys and focus group discussions or key informant interviews) of the Savings Mobilisation Research or other research as prioritised by NBC.

3. Marketing & Fundraising 20 

• Research and assist in writing funding proposals for financial education and economic empowerment activities.
• Attend meetings with potential donors and partners together with Cambodia Country Manager and  expand Good Return and NBCs funding networks.

4. Other activities 10

• Other activities may arise with the partner organisation during the course of the FSO assignment and responsibilities will be agreed in accordance with the needs of the partnership.

Qualifications :

CITIZENSHIP

You must be an Australian citizen or have permanent residency to apply for this position. Applicants not meeting this requirement will not be considered.

ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• A degree in International Development Education Arts/Communications Economics Finance/Business or similar
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• IT skills particularly Google Suite
• Strong research analysis and report writing skills
• At least 1 year of relevant work experience such as in public communication campaigns/marketing  teaching/training curriculum development finance/banking policy regulation research

DESIRABLE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• Experience working in a crosscultural context
• Independent living or travel experience preferably in the Asia Pacific region
• Social media experience 
• Experience in developing training and assessment programs
• Experience in monitoring and evaluation
• Interest in gender equality and womens economic empowerment

ESSENTIAL PERSONAL QUALITIES

• Independence and resilience
• Crosscultural awareness and sensitivity
• Patience tolerance and openmindedness
• Responsible (for own actions upholding integrity)
• Initiative and ability to adapt to limited resources
• A sense of humour!

ALLOWANCES AND SUPPORT

Predeparture:

• Induction training 
• Health check and vaccination expenses
• Visa expenses
• International airfares at the commencement and conclusion of the assignment

Settling in:

• Support to find and book initial accommodation; it is the responsibility of the FSO to secure longterm accommodation
• First 2 monthly allowance payments paid in advance to assist with setup costs incountry
• Orientation support (negotiating lease agreements shopping options etc.

During assignment:

• Support monitoring and security guidance from Supervisor and Good Return regional & Sydney offices
• Monthly allowance (to cover living and accommodation expenses) 
• Language allowance 
• Travel insurance
• Professional development opportunities
• Debrief following conclusion of placement

Additional Information :

The placement will commence incountry from June 2025 to December 2026 18 months from the date of arrival incountry). Periods of less than 18 months will not be considered. 

Good Return will provide international airfares at the commencement and conclusion of the assignment certain predeparture medical costs visa expenses insurance and a monthly living allowance (intended to cover accommodation and other daily expenses).

How to apply: Applications can be submitted by selecting the Im interested link below.

Applicants should provide a CV and a cover letter that addresses the selection criteria listed in the full position description along with your phone and Skype contact details. Cover letters can be included in the messages section or uploaded together with a CV file.

We would love to hear how you heard about the position.

Enquiries can be directed via the Good Return website close: COB Friday 16 May 2025 

Length of assignment: 18 months

Level of effort: Fulltime 38 hours per week plus occasional weekend activities

Additional notes: 

• Good Return is an inclusive organisation. We strive to build a team that truly represents our diverse society and those of the AsiaPacific 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 childsafe 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 preemployment checks.

Remote Work :

No

Employment Type :

Fulltime