Program Background

Pacific Australia Skills is a significant Australian investment which stands to make a major contribution to supporting social and economic growth in the region through strengthening the skills and training sector across the Pacific and Timor-Leste. Pacific Australia Skills builds on the achievements of 17 years of Australian Government support for skills and training in the Pacific. 

About DT Global Asia Pacific

At DT Global Asia Pacific, we aim to positively impact people’s lives through delivery excellence. As a leading implementing partner across Asia and the Pacific, we co-create locally led solutions in partnership with governments, communities, and stakeholders. We bring together talented teams and deep regional expertise to deliver initiatives that promote inclusive economic growth, essential services, and resilient, secure communities. With over 1,500 staff, experts in 22+ countries and more than 60 years of development experience, we tackle complex community, national and transnational challenges — from governance and justice systems to climate resilience, infrastructure and social equity — with innovative thinking and a commitment to long-term impact.

For more information, please see www.dt-global.com

• Full-time to be located in Port Vila, Vanuatu. • Locally based role

This position is open to national applicants only

• Duration up to 31 December 2025 with possibility of extension
• Competitive remuneration and benefits package
• Based in Yaren, Nauru with possibility of flexible working arrangements

This position is open to national applicants only

Position Description

Australia Awards – South Asia & Mongolia is administered by Palladium on behalf of the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). The Program goal is to support eight partner countries – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – in achieving their development goals through education and knowledge transfer, and to build enduring relationships with Australia that advance mutual interests. 

Australia Awards – South Asia & Mongolia is a multi-country program with service delivery offices currently in Colombo, Dhaka, Islamabad, Kathmandu, Thimphu and Ulaanbaatar – and, following an appointment to this position, now in Malé. Leadership, coordination, and support are provided by “the Hub” – a regional team based in Colombo and Australia. 

The first resident Australian High Commission in the Republic of Maldives opened in July 2023. With 700 Australian Awards alumni making significant contributions to Maldives in a range of fields, the High Commission is now stepping up the Australia Awards in-country presence and support. 

Are you passionate about contributing to impactful change in Papua New Guinea's infrastructure sector? We are offering an exciting opportunity for a skilled Infrastructure Project Manager to join our team. If you're ready to contribute to transformative projects that shape the future, we want to hear from you!

• Full time fixed-term until June 2027, with possible extension
• Based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
• Open to national candidates only
• Competitive remuneration and benefits package

Indonesia’s Vision 2045 sets the goal for Indonesia to transition from a resource-based economy towards an advanced service, technology, and knowledge-based economy by the centenary of its independence (2045). The 2025-2045 National Long Term Development Plan emphasises the urgency of Indonesia’s human resource development to fully realise 2045 goals.

Faced however with persistent low student performance that is emblematic of a learning crisis, significant improvement in student learning will be required to reach Indonesia’s 2045 goals. Government of Indonesia (GoI) has started an ambitious program of education reforms. Successive education ministers have set out to modernise the education system through reforming the national curriculum and teaching and assessment approaches, to produce citizens with strong foundational skills, open minds, and inclusive values. 

Australia is a long-term supporter of the Indonesian basic education sector, with continuous investments supporting education quality improvements for the past two decades, including through the INOVASI program (Phase 1 2016-2020; Phase 2 2020-2023) that focused on supporting acquisition of literacy and numeracy foundational skills in early grades classrooms; exploring local problems and solutions; and generating evidence to inform government policy development and practices.

This third phase of INOVASI (2024-2027) builds upon the existing program’s approach and lessons learned and takes the focus on the development of foundational skills through to the end of the primary grades. Phase 3 will engage with priority issues of Australia’s development policy: gender equality, effective inclusion of children with a disability, responses to the climate change challenge in education. It will focus on the challenge of policy implementation and the gaps that exist between national policies and practices at district and school levels, and use the well attested-success of INOVASI’s local problem-based approach to continuously support policy development for effective fit between policy and implementation context.

INOVASI Phase 3 is implemented in 25 districts and cities across Indonesia, in the provinces of West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, North Kalimantan, East Java, West Java, and Maluku. The program also works in Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN).

The Program is implemented by Palladium on behalf of DFAT.

Purpose of the Position
MoECRT’s recent focus on building Eight National Characters through strengthening Seven Habits of Great Indonesian Children, alongside the Kurikulum Berbasis Cinta (KBC) under the Ministry of Religious Affairs, emphasizes the importance of embedding character values into education. These approaches foster students’ spiritual, emotional, social, ecological, and intellectual growth, while also advancing inclusive values, gender equality, disability inclusion, and environmental responsibility—aligning closely with broader GEDSI and climate change priorities.

The Character Education Specialist will provide technical leadership, advice, and support to integrate character education within INOVASI . The Specialist will support the design, piloting, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of character education approaches, particularly aligned with the Kurikulum Berbasis Cinta and whole-school development frameworks. This position plays a critical role in bridging national policy, subnational implementation, and school-level practice, ensuring that character education becomes a living practice across the school community.

Working with children
Is this position likely to come into contact with children?                     ☒ Yes                          ☐ No

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the direction of the School Ecosystem and Quality Manager, the Character Education Specialist will:

• Lead the development and refinement of INOVASI’s character education strategy, aligning with the Guiding Notes and other INOVASI strategy documents and and program logic.
• Provide technical input to integrate character education into INOVASI work particularly at the district and school level using whole-school development model.
• Support subnational teams, school leaders, teachers, supervisors, and communities to understand, apply, and model effective character education approaches through trainings, workshops and other ways
• Facilitate collaboration with relevant stakeholders including TTIs and ministries’ technical units to ensure alignment and institutional capacity building.
• Support schools and districts in adopting whole-school approaches where character values are embedded in leadership, teaching, school culture, parental engagement, and community partnerships.
• Provide technical support to national counterparts in Kemenag and MoECRT related to character education policy development, curriculum design, teacher development frameworks, and monitoring systems.
• Participate and contribute in national and global working groups, workshops, and technical discussionsto inform and support government policy processes.
• Work closely with the Performance and Learning team to develop appropriate indicators, tools, and approaches to measure character education implementation and outcomes.
• Ensure that character education interventions are inclusive, gender-responsive, disability-inclusive, and address ecological responsibility as integral parts of character formation.
• Maintain strong communication and coordination with national and subnational teams to promote cross-learning and coherent program delivery.
• Contribute to routine reporting, six-monthly progress reports, and ad hoc reporting to DFAT and Government of Indonesia counterparts.
• Other tasks as may reasonably be required by the School Ecosystem and Quality Improvement Manager.
   

Indonesia’s Vision 2045 sets the goal for Indonesia to transition from a resource-based economy towards an advanced service, technology, and knowledge-based economy by the centenary of its independence (2045). The 2025-2045 National Long Term Development Plan emphasises the urgency of Indonesia’s human resource development to fully realise 2045 goals.

Faced however with persistent low student performance that is emblematic of a learning crisis, significant improvement in student learning will be required to reach Indonesia’s 2045 goals. Government of Indonesia (GoI) has started an ambitious program of education reforms. Successive education ministers have set out to modernise the education system through reforming the national curriculum and teaching and assessment approaches, to produce citizens with strong foundational skills, open minds, and inclusive values. 

Australia is a long-term supporter of the Indonesian basic education sector, with continuous investments supporting education quality improvements for the past two decades, including through the INOVASI program (Phase 1 2016-2020; Phase 2 2020-2023) that focused on supporting acquisition of literacy and numeracy foundational skills in early grades classrooms; exploring local problems and solutions; and generating evidence to inform government policy development and practices.

This third phase of INOVASI (2024-2027) builds upon the existing program’s approach and lessons learned and takes the focus on the development of foundational skills through to the end of the primary grades. Phase 3 will engage with priority issues of Australia’s development policy: gender equality, effective inclusion of children with a disability, responses to the climate change challenge in education. It will focus on the challenge of policy implementation and the gaps that exist between national policies and practices at district and school levels, and use the well attested-success of INOVASI’s local problem-based approach to continuously support policy development for effective fit between policy and implementation context.

INOVASI Phase 3 is implemented in 25 districts and cities across Indonesia, in the provinces of West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, North Kalimantan, East Java, West Java, and Maluku. The program also works in Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN).

The Program is implemented by Palladium on behalf of DFAT.

Purpose of the Position
INOVASI is committed to strengthening the education ecosystem in Indonesia by supporting local actors in enhancing their communication capacity. Recognizing that many government officials, education advocates, and civil society partners operate in silos with limited access to upskilling opportunities, INOVASI will launch a Community of Practice (CoP) initiative to foster peer learning, shared problem-solving, and more coordinated communication strategies.

To support this initiative, INOVASI seeks a dedicated Communication Officer who will facilitate the day-to-day operations of the Community of Practice, manage engagement with members, and ensure the CoP delivers on its intended impact.

The Communication Officer will lead the facilitation, coordination, and documentation of the Community of Practice within the education sector. The role is essential in fostering an inclusive, participatory space where members share knowledge, sharpen their communication skills, align efforts, and drive collective impact.

To that end, this position will also contribute to the capacity development of key actors in crafting and delivering effective communication strategies that support behaviour change, particularly in areas such as inclusive education, climate-responsive schooling, and strengthening foundational skills.

Working with children
Is this position likely to come into contact with children?                     ☒ Yes                          ☐ No

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the direction of Strategic Communications Manager, the Communication Officer’s main duties will include:

• Coordinate the planning, implementation, and monitoring of Community of Practice (CoP) activities, including the development of annual work plans and reporting.
• Organize and facilitate regular CoP sessions, including expert-led discussions, peer learning forums, and thematic workshops.
• Manage all logistics for CoP meetings, including agenda setting, speaker engagement, documentation, and timely follow-up.
• Facilitate ongoing communication with members using digital platforms such as WhatsApp, email, and shared folders, ensuring inclusive and responsive engagement.
• Curate and share communication tools, resources, case studies, and good practices to support members’ capacity development and behaviour change communication
• Monitor member participation, session attendance, and engagement levels; identify and address barriers to continued involvement.
• Design and administer simple monitoring tools, feedback forms, and short surveys to assess satisfaction, knowledge uptake, and applied learning.
• Support onboarding of new members, ensuring diversity in geography, institution type, and stakeholder representation, including marginalised groups.
• Foster a safe, inclusive, and collaborative learning environment where all members feel encouraged to contribute.
• Document lessons learned, member feedback, and examples of improved communication practices influenced by the CoP.
• Coordinate with other INOVASI teams (e.g., GEDSI, MERL, Thematic Leads) and external partners to identify opportunities for synergy and shared learning.
• Contribute to national and subnational messaging strategies by aligning communication efforts and promoting shared advocacy goals.
• Undertake other duties as assigned by the Strategic Communication Manager to support the successful implementation of the program.