KEY INFORMATION

Job Title: Social Protection Dataset Expert
Position Type (full/part time): Part Time
Duration/Level of Effort (long/short term): April 2026 – January 2027 (maximum of 120 working days)
Position Location (e.g. city, country, remote): Metro Manila, Philippines with virtual coordination and possible meetings with DSWD Central Office and partner agencies (PSA, DICT, etc.)

SUMMARY OF THE PROJECT

The DFAT (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) Social Protection, Inclusion and Gender equality (SPRING) program is Australia’s flagship investment of support to the Philippine Government on Social Protection, Gender Equality, Disability, Social Inclusion and Indigenous Inclusion. It is an AUD 40 million investment over 5 years that will support the joint Development Partnership Plan (DPP 2024-2029) between the Government of Australia and the Philippine Government. The investment will be the DFAT’s primary avenue in the Philippines for supporting poverty reduction and bilateral funding on gender equality and social inclusion at the national level and with some select Local Government Units (LGUs). SPRING supports efforts under Australia’s new International Development Policy and DFAT’s forthcoming new strategies on gender equality, disability equity and rights, and translate these into implementation in the Philippines. 

SPRING contributes to the goal that the social and economic transformation in the Philippines reduces poverty and provides equal opportunities to all Filipinos in line with the Philippines Development Plan.

The objective of SPRING is that Australia works in partnership with the Philippine Government to improve systems and structures that reduce poverty and inequality and advance gender equality and the rights of people with disabilities. 

SPRING has four mutually reinforcing End of Program Outcomes (EOPOs): 

1. Philippine Government social protection plans, policies and programs increasingly close gaps in the social protection floor.
2. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and select LGU systems increasingly deliver quality social protection that is inclusive, gender and shock responsive, and climate sensitive.
3. The Philippine Government increasingly invests in gender responsive policies, plans, programs and systems.
4. The Philippine Government improves data, systems and targeting to enable people with disability and Indigenous Peoples improved access to targeted services.

SUMMARY OF THE POSITION

The National Social Protection Dataset Expert will lead a structured technical assessment and design activity to support the development and strengthening of the Dynamic Social Registry (DSR). The assignment will deliver an end-to-end review and recommendations package across e nterprise software architecture, security, API-enabled interoperability, source code quality and performance, and data management and governance, with outputs developed through a phased approach from inception to final handover. 

The work will cover five interconnected areas: (i) enterprise software architecture, including current-state assessment, gap analysis, target-state blueprint, and an architecture modernization roadmap; (ii) security implementation, including security posture and compliance review and a security architecture and enhancement plan pursued in collaboration with DSWD ICTMS; (iii) API communication and interoperability, including mapping of existing APIs, performance benchmarking (latency, throughput, error rates), and recommendations for scalable API design, documentation, versioning, and governance, including pathways for multi-agency interoperability; (iv) source code review, including identification of vulnerabilities and performance issues and delivery of refactoring, optimization, and codebase modernization recommendations; and (v) data management and governance, including data flow and data architecture assessment, metadata and data quality review, governance maturity assessment (policies, roles, decision rights), and an implementation roadmap.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

Working under the guidance of the Social Protection Lead and in close coordination with DSWD counterparts, the Dataset Expert will lead the end-to-end technical delivery of DSR’s assessment and design. The Expert will set the overall analytical approach, direct technical work across enterprise architecture, security, interoperability, source code review, and data governance, and ensure that findings and recommendations are consolidated into coherent, implementation-oriented outputs. The Expert will guide and provide quality assurance to the technical inputs prepared by the Program Developer, ensuring that all technical artifacts, logs, diagrams, and analysis outputs are aligned to the agreed methodology and are ready for validation and handover. Specific responsibilities will include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Enterprise Software Architecture

• Lead the review of the current enterprise architecture, including applications, integrations, infrastructure, and technology stack, and assess alignment with organizational strategy, scalability needs, and operational requirements.

• Lead identification of architectural gaps, technical debt, performance bottlenecks, and modernization opportunities, and approve the architecture issues log and prioritized recommendations (with supporting inventories and diagrams prepared by the Program Developer).

• Lead evaluation of integration patterns, API design, middleware, and system interoperability arrangements, and validate key constraints and opportunities with technical counterparts.

• Develop the target-state enterprise architecture blueprint with recommended platforms and patterns (diagrams and narrative).

• Develop a phased migration and modernization roadmap that specifies sequencing across workstreams, including dependencies, risks, and required capabilities for implementation.

2. Security Implementation

• Lead a comprehensive review of security posture across application, infrastructure, and network layers, including documentation of findings and validation with relevant counterparts (including ICTMS where applicable).

• Lead assessment of authentication, authorization, encryption, logging, and vulnerability management practices, and confirm results captured in the controls evaluation matrix prepared with support from the Program Developer.

• Lead compliance assessment against relevant standards and requirements (including ISO 27001, NIST, Data Privacy Act of 2012, DSWD policies, and local data protection laws) and finalize the compliance gap report.

• Lead identification and prioritization of security gaps, misconfigurations, and high-risk exposures, and approve the risk register with severity ratings.

• Recommend a security architecture and implementation plan, including governance arrangements for ongoing oversight and continuous improvement (security governance framework and RACI).

3. API Communication Assessment and Interoperability

• Lead mapping of inter-system communications and assessment of API documentation quality and versioning practices; validate bottlenecks, failure points, and inefficiencies with technical teams.

• Lead assessment of existing API performance and documentation of current benchmarks, including latency, throughput, and error-rate measurements, and confirmation of baseline metrics and target KPIs.

• Lead development of enhancement recommendations and an API governance model (roles, responsibilities, review processes) aligned with the target enterprise architecture, security architecture, and data management proposals.

• Lead development of practical scaling and refactoring options, standardized guidelines for API design, versioning, lifecycle management, documentation, and checklists for future API development.

4. Source Code Review

• Lead structured review of source code quality, maintainability, modularity, and adherence to coding standards, and approve the source code quality assessment report.

• Lead identification and prioritization of vulnerabilities, insecure coding patterns, and performance inefficiencies, and approve the findings log prepared with support from the Program Developer.

• Lead assessment of documentation quality, test coverage, CI/CD pipelines, and development workflows, and validate DevOps and documentation assessment outputs.

• Lead evaluation of alignment between code implementation and architectural design principles and approve the code-to-architecture alignment review.

• Provide actionable recommendations for refactoring and optimization and propose a modernization roadmap for the codebase.

• Propose a modernization roadmap for the codebase, including sequencing, dependencies, and key enablers required to implement recommendations.

   

5. Data Management, Data Flows, and Governance

• Lead review of current data architecture, data models, storage solutions, and data flows, and approve data architecture assessment and flow maps.

• Lead assessment of data quality, metadata management, MDM, and data lifecycle practices and finalize the corresponding assessment report.

• Lead evaluation of governance structures, stewardship roles, decision rights, and compliance with data protection regulations, and approve the governance maturity assessment.

• Lead identification of gaps in data standards, interoperability, lineage tracking, and access controls, and approve the data management gap analysis.

• Recommend a comprehensive data governance framework (policies, roles, processes) and develop the target-state data architecture blueprint and implementation roadmap.

• Develop a target-state data architecture and roadmap that sets out the required improvements in data standards, interoperability, metadata management, and governance routines, with phased implementation steps.

DELIVERABLES AND TIMELINES

JOB REQUIREMENTS

Education:

• Advanced degree (Master’s level or higher) in Management Information Systems, Computer Science, Data Science, and other related fields.

• Additional training or certification in data analytics, management information systems (MIS), or digital governance is an advantage.

Minimum Experience:

• At least 10 years in experience leading enterprise architecture assessments and producing target-state designs and modernization or migration roadmaps, including sequencing, dependencies, risks, and required capabilities.

• Proven experience conducting security posture assessments and developing security architecture proposals and enhancement plans, including coordination with centralized cybersecurity teams.

• Strong experience assessing API-enabled systems interoperability, including mapping existing APIs, benchmarking performance (latency, throughput, error rates), and developing API design and governance recommendations.

• Demonstrated experience conducting structured source code reviews to assess maintainability, vulnerabilities, performance issues, and DevOps practices, and proposing a codebase modernization roadmap.

• Strong experience in data architecture and data governance, including data flow mapping, metadata management, data quality assessment, governance framework development (policies, roles, processes), and development of a target-state data architecture and roadmap.

Essential Skills:

• Strong analytical skills and ability to synthesize complex technical findings into clear, actionable recommendations for both technical and management audiences.

• Strong report writing skills, including preparation of technical assessment reports, technical notes, architecture diagrams, and phased implementation roadmaps.

• Proven ability to lead technical consultations and validation workshops and manage inputs across multiple technical domains.

• Ability to work effectively with government counterparts and multi-disciplinary teams, including directing and quality assuring technical inputs from support roles.

• Familiarity with data governance, privacy, and interoperability standards (e.g., DICT guidelines, Data Privacy Act, open data principles).

• Demonstrated commitment to and understanding of GEDSI principles, with knowledge or experience in promoting gender equality, disability, and social inclusion especially within adaptive programs like SPRING. This includes a clear understanding of and practical experience in safeguarding, particularly in the context of child protection (CP) and Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment (SEAH), with the ability to integrate safeguarding measures into program implementation.

• Compliance to DFAT policies on fraud control, financing terrorism, child protection and other social safeguards.

APPLICATION PROCESS

This is a rolling recruitment. Applications will be reviewed and vetted sequentially as they are received. We encourage interested individuals to apply as early as possible. 

For your application to be considered, please upload your documents as followed: Candidate Last Name, First Name, date, Title of the Position.

Cowater international strives to maintain a fair, transparent, and human centered recruitment process. As part of our commitment to responsible hiring practices and compliance with evolving recruitment regulations, we may use AI assisted tools to support limited aspects of our talent acquisition workflow, such as reviewing or shortlisting applications. These tools are used only to enhance efficiency and consistency in our processes. All assessments, interviews, and final hiring decisions are made exclusively by our human recruiting managers. Candidates may request additional information about the use of these tools or reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process.

Cowater International is an equal opportunity employer, basing employment on merit and qualifications as they relate to professional experience and position expectations. Cowater does not discriminate against any employee or applicant on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender identity, disability, age, or any other basis protected by law.

We thank all applicants, however only those shortlisted will be contacted.

ABOUT US

Founded in 1985, Cowater International is a leading global development consulting company. Headquartered in Ottawa and with corporate hubs in Auckland, Berlin, Brussels, Helsinki, London, Madrid, Manila, Nairobi, Singapore and Stockholm, Cowater International has successfully delivered a portfolio of over 2500 projects and assignments in more than 95 countries. We work with governments, private sector actors and communities implementing projects that support socio-economic development, institutional strengthening, environmental improvements and advance equal opportunities for all. We are a diverse and experienced team committed to building a better tomorrow for the people we serve. Our adaptive approach to management has led to our yearly award-winning work and recognition as one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies since 2017.

We thank you for your interest in building a better tomorrow.