1. About SPRING

The Social Protection, Inclusion and Gender Equality (SPRING) Program is Australia’s flagship investment supporting the Government of the Philippines to strengthen social protection, gender equality, disability inclusion, Indigenous Peoples inclusion, and inclusive local service delivery. SPRING is implemented by Cowater International and works in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and other national and subnational government partners.

SPRING supports government-led reforms that strengthen policies, systems, institutions, capacities, and implementation arrangements so that social protection and inclusion systems are more gender-responsive, disability-inclusive, shock-responsive, climate-sensitive, locally led, and evidence-informed.

2. Purpose of this Expression of Interest

SPRING is refreshing and expanding its Merit Pool of pre-qualified short-term technical assistance (STA) consultants, advisers, researchers, facilitators, service providers, and organisations. The Merit Pool will help SPRING rapidly identify and engage suitably qualified expertise for assignments that arise across the program’s remaining implementation period.

This call is intentionally framed broadly. SPRING’s work is adaptive and demand-driven, and future technical needs may include both generalist development program skills and specialist technical expertise. Applicants are encouraged to indicate all areas in which they can credibly contribute, rather than limiting their response to a narrow technical category.

Membership in the Merit Pool means that an applicant has been pre-qualified for possible future opportunities. It does not guarantee work, a contract, or a minimum volume of assignments. When assignments arise, SPRING may invite pool members to submit a brief cover letter / proposal, confirm fee rate / financial proposal, confirm availability, provide additional documentation, or participate in a further selection process.

3. Who We Are Looking For

SPRING welcomes Expressions of Interest from national and international applicants, including individuals, consulting firms, research organisations, academic institutions, civil society organisations, non-government organisations, and other legally registered entities able to provide qualified experts for short-term assignments.

SPRING particularly encourages applications from Philippine-based individuals and organisations, including firms and local service providers with strong knowledge of the Philippine policy, governance, social protection, gender equality, disability inclusion, Indigenous Peoples inclusion, local government, and civil society context.

4. Indicative Areas of Expertise

SPRING seeks a wide range of expertise across technical, analytical, operational, and programmatic areas. Applicants may nominate one or more areas of expertise. The areas below are indicative and may evolve as program needs change.

4.1 Social Protection, Poverty, and Inclusive Service Delivery

• Social protection policy, systems strengthening, and reform implementation

• Social assistance, social insurance, social pension, and social protection floor analysis

• Adaptive and shock-responsive social protection, disaster risk, climate risk, and anticipatory action

• Local government social protection systems, national–subnational coordination, and service delivery reform

• Beneficiary identification, grievance systems, case management, referral pathways, and social registries

• Social welfare workforce strengthening, capability development, and service delivery quality improvement

4.2 Gender Equality, Disability, Social Inclusion, and Indigenous Peoples Inclusion

• Gender equality and women’s empowerment policy, planning, budgeting, and monitoring

• Disability inclusion, disability data, local disability governance, and disability-responsive service delivery

• Indigenous Peoples inclusion, Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representative participation, culturally responsive approaches, and local governance

• Gender-responsive and adolescent-responsive services, including program design, referral pathways, and frontline capacity building

• Safeguarding, child protection, prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment (PSEAH), risk management, and inclusive accountability

• Accessibility, inclusive communications, reasonable accommodation, and accessible events and materials

4.3 Policy, Governance, Public Finance, and Institutional Strengthening

• Policy analysis, policy reform, legislative review, regulatory analysis, and policy dialogue support

• Political economy analysis, stakeholder mapping, institutional diagnostics, and change management

• Public financial management, fiscal analysis, costing, financing options, budget analysis, and value-for-money analysis

• Decentralisation, local governance, intergovernmental coordination, and local planning and budgeting

• Organisational development, institutional strengthening, governance systems, and capability assessments

4.4 Research, Data, Digital Systems, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning

• Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods research, survey design ande delivery including field research, statistical and economic analysis and evidence synthesis for primary and secondary data.

• Research associate, policy analyst, data analyst, research manager, and technical writer roles

• MEL framework and MEL system development, operationalisation, strengthening, and review, including results frameworks, theories of change, indicators, monitoring systems, tools, rubrics, learning agendas, case studies, and adaptive management approaches

• Evaluation design and implementation, including baseline, mid-term, endline, process, outcome, and impact evaluations

• Management information systems, social registries, interoperability, data governance, information security, and digital transformation

• Knowledge management, evidence use, data visualisation, learning products, and policy briefs

4.5 Training, Facilitation, Communications, Partnerships, Grants, and Program Delivery

• Training design, adult learning, curriculum development, training of trainers, mentoring, coaching, and capability development

• Facilitation of workshops, consultations, co-design processes, technical working groups, and multi-stakeholder dialogues

• Strategic communications, behaviour-informed communications, advocacy materials, accessible communications, knowledge products, and content strategy

• Audio-visual production, animation, video content, graphic design, creative direction, branding, layout, illustration, post-production, captioning, subtitling, and accessible multimedia products

• Event organisation and delivery support, including logistics, venue coordination, participant travel, administrative support, registration, supplier coordination, materials preparation, and accessibility arrangements

• Partnerships, partnership brokering, grants design and management, civil society engagement, supplier due diligence, compliance, and partner performance monitoring

• Program management, portfolio coordination, risk management, safeguarding, fraud & fiduciary risk management, procurement support, operational planning, and quality assurance

5. Types of Assignments

Assignments may vary in length, level of effort, location, and modality. They may include remote inputs, Manila-based work, travel to subnational sites, embedded advisory support, rapid analysis, facilitation, research, training delivery, technical review, development of tools and guidance, or implementation support. Assignments may be short, discrete inputs or longer intermittent engagements, depending on program needs.

SPRING’s current and anticipated work includes support to social protection reform, 4Ps analysis and service delivery, universal social pension and old-age income security, adaptive and shock-responsive systems, LINGAP and local government capacity strengthening, dynamic social registry modernisation, gender-responsive services for adolescents, PCW capability development, disability policy and local implementation, Indigenous Peoples participation in local governance, subnational grants and partnerships, MEL, GEDSI mainstreaming, safeguarding, communications, and program delivery systems.

6. Eligibility and General Requirements

6.1 Individuals

• Relevant professional experience in one or more of the areas listed in this EOI.

• Demonstrated ability to produce high-quality outputs within agreed timelines.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English; Filipino or relevant local language skills are an advantage for Philippines-based assignments.

• Ability to work collaboratively with government, communities, civil society, development partners, and multidisciplinary teams.

• Commitment to gender equality, disability inclusion, social inclusion, safeguarding, child protection, and prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.

• Experience working in or with the Philippines is highly desirable for assignments requiring local context knowledge.

6.2 Organisations

• Legal registration and good standing in the relevant jurisdiction.

• Relevant organisational experience in one or more areas listed in this EOI.

• Capacity to nominate, mobilise, manage, supervise, and quality-assure suitably qualified experts.

• Appropriate systems for safeguarding, child protection, SEAH prevention, fraud control, conflict-of-interest management, quality assurance, financial management, and reporting.

• Experience working with government, development partners, civil society, communities, or local institutions is desirable.

• Philippine firms, research institutions, NGOs, CSOs, universities, and locally based service providers are encouraged to apply.

7. Application Requirements

SPRING is using a streamlined application process to reduce unnecessary compliance burden at the EOI stage. Applicants should submit only the documents listed below. Additional documentation may be requested later from shortlisted applicants or before contracting.

7.1 Individual Applicants

• Completed EOI form, including areas of expertise, availability, preferred working modality, and indicative daily rate or fee range.

• Current CV, maximum four pages.

• Brief statement of relevant experience, maximum one page, or completion of the relevant section in the EOI form.

7.2 Organisational Applicants

• Completed organisational EOI form, including applicant type, organisational profile, areas of expertise, countries or locations of operation, and indicative fee structure.

• Short organisational profile, maximum five pages, outlining relevant experience and capability.

• List of proposed or indicative experts, if available, including names, roles, technical areas, and short biographies or CVs.

Applicants should not submit copies of degrees, professional certificates, business permits, tax documents, safeguarding policies, financial statements, or other compliance documents at the first EOI stage unless specifically requested. These may be requested later for due diligence, verification, contracting, or assignment-specific requirements.

8. Assessment and Selection Process

SPRING will apply a staged assessment process to reduce administrative burden and ensure technical merit is considered before detailed compliance checks are requested.

Stage 1: Completeness and Eligibility Screening

SPRING will check whether the applicant has submitted the required EOI materials and appears broadly eligible. Applications will not be held for minor missing supporting documents that are not required at the EOI stage. Where information is insufficient to confirm basic eligibility, SPRING may request clarification or may assess the application based on the information provided.

Stage 2: Technical Review and Pool Categorisation

Applications that pass basic screening will be reviewed for relevance and depth of expertise, quality of experience, alignment with SPRING’s current and anticipated needs, understanding of GEDSI and safeguarding principles, experience in the Philippine or comparable contexts, and ability to deliver high-quality outputs. Applicants may be categorised by expertise area, seniority, location, availability, modality, and suitability for future assignments.

Stage 3: Assignment-Specific Selection

When a specific assignment arises, SPRING may invite one or more pool members to confirm availability and submit assignment-specific information. This may include a short methodology, workplan, financial proposal, updated CVs, nominated experts, work samples, due diligence documents, or references. Selection will consider technical fit, availability, value for money, delivery risk, safeguarding and compliance requirements, and any assignment-specific procurement rules.

9. Submission Instructions

How to Submit Your Application

Applicants may submit their EOI through the designated Cowater recruitment portal. To ensure that all required information is received and assessed, applicants must combine all required documents into one PDF file and upload the file through the portal.

The combined PDF should include:

Individual Applicants:

• Completed Individual EOI Form (Annex A Individual EOI Form.docx)

• Current CV (maximum four pages)

• Brief statement of relevant experience (if applicable)

Organisational Applicants:

• Completed Organisational EOI Form (Annex B Organisational EOI Form.docx)

• Organisational profile

• List of proposed experts (if available)

• CVs or short biographies of proposed experts (if available)

File naming convention:
[Applicant Name]_SPRING_MeritPool_EOI_2026.pdf

Applicants are advised to ensure that the uploaded file contains all required documents before submission. Due to system limitations, separate annexes or supporting documents cannot be uploaded individually.

Alternative Submission Method:
If you experience technical difficulties with the online portal, you may email your complete application package as a single PDF file to hr@springphilippines.org with the subject line:

SPRING Merit Pool EOI – [Individual / Organisation] – [Primary Expertise Area] – [Applicant Name]

Deadline: SPRING's Merit Pool is open on a rolling basis. SPRING reserves the right to close and/or reopen applications based on program requirements.

10. Important Notes

• Submission of an EOI does not guarantee inclusion in the Merit Pool, a contract, or an assignment.

• SPRING may contact applicants for clarification, additional information, or updates to availability and expertise.

• SPRING may request additional compliance documents only when required for due diligence, contracting, or assignment-specific selection.

• SPRING may engage either individual consultants directly or organisations to provide named experts, depending on the assignment and procurement requirements.

• Organisations may not substitute proposed experts for an assignment without prior written approval from SPRING.

• SPRING reserves the right to accept, reject, defer, or re-categorise applications at its discretion and in line with program needs and procurement requirements.

• Applications may be retained for the duration of the program, unless the applicant requests removal from the Merit Pool.

11. General Terms and Conditions

Confidentiality: Information submitted by applicants will be treated as confidential and used only for recruitment, procurement, due diligence, and contract management purposes.

Data privacy: By submitting an application, applicants consent to SPRING and Cowater collecting, storing, and processing personal and organisational information for Merit Pool, recruitment, procurement, due diligence, and contract management purposes, consistent with applicable data privacy requirements.

Safeguarding: All contracted individuals and organisations must comply with relevant Cowater, SPRING, and DFAT safeguarding, child protection, SEAH prevention, fraud control, counter-terrorism, and other social safeguard requirements. Additional checks, declarations, or training may be required before contracting.

Conflict of interest: Applicants must declare any actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest. Failure to disclose relevant conflicts may result in exclusion from consideration or termination of a contract.

Costs: SPRING will not reimburse costs incurred in preparing or submitting an EOI.

Equal opportunity: Cowater International is an equal opportunity employer and bases selection on merit, qualifications, experience, and assignment requirements. Cowater does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender identity, disability, age, or any other basis protected by law.