Job Vacancy: Consulting opportunity: Support to a study on financial services to wage workers in Nigeria

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Job Vacancy: Job title: Consulting opportunity: Support to a study on financial services to wage workers in Nigeria

Job description: The ILO’s Global Centre on Digital Wages for Decent Work is looking for a national consultant to support a study on financial services to wage workers in Nigeria, assessing their benefits, impacts and challenges for workers, employers, service providers and regulators.

Scope of work

The national consultant is expected to provide support to the study on “earned wage access” (EWA) services with information collected in Nigeria, including applicable national regulations, as well as the local coordination of interviews with key informants and enterprises, and focal group discussions with workers. The national consultant will conduct key informant interviews at the national level, in-depth interviews with enterprises offering EWA services to their employees, and focal group discussions with workers.

Research tools, technical guidance and operational support will be provided by the ILO Global Centre on Digital Wages for Decent Work and by a lead consultant hired to conduct the study at the global level. The global study will map the landscape of EWA services in four selected countries, including Nigeria.

The national consultant should provide information regarding EWA services in Nigeria on the following issues:

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A. Review of national regulations, if any, considering aspects of labour relations, consumer protection and financial services that apply to EWA services.

B. Non-exhaustive mapping of service providers operating in Nigeria (1 -2 EWA service providers). It should include information on their business and revenue models, taking into account applicable fees, information on cost-sharing arrangements, related financial services offered by EWA providers, operational issues 1 The only exception is Bill S442 of the United States of America Senate, which is going to be effective from May 1, 2024. More information available at: 3 (technology, data transfer from employers to providers, integration to payroll systems), target markets, risk management, orientation to social impact and training of workers to use the services, and other aspects deemed relevant. An initial list of providers in Nigeria will be available to the national consultant.

C. Identification of the reasons why employers offer EWA services to their workers and the decision-making process for selecting services and providers. The information collected by the national consultant is expected to contribute to a better understanding of the benefits, risks and impacts for enterprises, taking into account financial (cash flow management), human resources (turnover, engagement, productivity), and operational (integration to payroll services) aspects, as well as usage of additional financial and non-financial services. It should present information obtained from enterprises of different sizes and economic sectors and should allow for the understanding of different usages of EWA services amongst them.

D. Collecting of quantitative and qualitative information on the rationale of women and men workers’ demand for EWA services, as well as their perception regarding costs, benefits, and risks. The collected information should support the understanding of EWA services’ impact on the overall wellbeing (including mental health), financial control (including access to earned wages to pay for unexpected expenditures and usage of usurious sources of borrowing), spending patterns, financial literacy, and incentives to access additional formal financial services. It is critical that the information considers gender-specific issues, including aspects such as control over wages, empowerment, and economic opportunities.

Methodology

The methodology combines desk review, key informant interviews, in-depth interviews with enterprises and focal group discussions with workers. Specifically, the methodological approach includes:

A. Desk review of selected bibliography (to be provided by the ILO) and of the relevant regulation in Nigeria. The desk review provides information on the EWA services and the national regulatory framework.

B. Key informant interviews with service providers, financial sector industry associations, business associations, trade unions, and regulatory authorities.

The ILO will support the national consultant in contacting and engaging key informants.

• Service providers and financial sector industry associations clarify and complement the desk review with qualitative information on the business and revenue models of EWA services. They also provide information on the perspective of providers and financial sector industry associations on the opportunities and challenges for the development of the EWA services’ market at the national level, as well as their perception regarding the current regulation. Tentative: 1-2 providers and one financial sector industry association.
• Regulatory authorities clarify and complement the desk review with qualitative information on the conditions under which EWA services can be responsibly offered to workers. They provide additional information on the regulatory challenges as perceived by national government authorities, including their understanding of the appropriate locus of regulation and promising ways of coordinating initiatives among different government bodies. Tentative: 1-2 regulatory authorities.
• Business associations and trade unions complement the study with their perception of the benefits, risks, and impact of EWA services for enterprises and workers, as well as their perspective on regulatory challenges. They also provide information on the perceived role of social dialogue in the decision-making process for selecting the service provider and in the support to workers. The interviews also contribute to the mapping of potential good practices of business associations and/or trade unions in the responsible promotion of EWA services. Tentative: one trade union and one business association.

C. In-depth interviews with enterprises provide information on the rationale for offering EWA services to their workers and selecting providers. They also help assess perceived benefits, risks, and impact from the perspective of their businesses. 4 The ILO will support the national consultant in contacting and engaging enterprises. The national consultant is expected to organize the in-depth interviews. Tentative: 2-3 enterprises, preferably of different sizes and sectors.

D. Focal group discussions with workers complement the study with qualitative information on perceived benefits, risk, and opportunities for women and men workers’ usage of EWA services. The focal groups include workers from the enterprises selected for the interview. The composition of focal groups allows for further investigation of gender-specific issues and should comprise workers using and not using EWA products to provide insights on different rationales of potential users. The national consultant is expected to coordinate with the enterprises interviewed for item C the identification of workers to participate in the focal group discussion, as well as its organization and logistics. Tentative: 1-2 focal groups, with 10 workers each, per enterprise. At least 1 focal group should be composed exclusively of women.

For the global study, the information collected by the national consultant in Nigeria will be complemented by a mobile phone survey which will provide quantitative information on the demographics and impact of EWA service on users. The arrangements will be coordinated directly between the ILO and the social impact measuring company hired for the mobile phone survey. The national consultant is not expected to be involved in the operational aspects but may be invited to comment on the questionnaire and will be informed of the results obtained.

Management arrangements

For the management arrangements, the national consultant hired for this assignment is responsible for: * Reviewing relevant regulation applicable to EWA services in Nigeria;

• Conducting interviews with key informants at the national level, using the research tools provided;
• Conducting the in-depth interviews with enterprises, using the research tools provided;
• Coordinating with interviewed enterprises to identify workers and conducting the focal group discussions using the research tools provided. The organization and logistics should ideally be arranged by the interviewed enterprises. The profile of the workers selected should be coordinated with the lead consultant and the ILO;
• Preparing a database with the quantitative and qualitative information obtained from the interviews and focal group discussions, according to the specifications of the research tools provided.
• Collaborating with the lead consultant in the development of the final report, clarifying doubts on the collected data and commenting on the first draft.

The ILO’s Global Centre on Digital Wages provides technical inputs throughout the study, liaises with ILO offices and programmes to facilitate access to constituents and enterprises, and supports the coordination of the research.

The lead consultant hired for the global study coordinates the activities at the global level and in the four selected countries, including Nigeria, develops the research tools and trains the national consultants to use them, provide technical support to national consultants throughout the process, and consolidates and analysis data collected to develop a final report.

The national consultant is expected to report to the lead consultant, participate in a virtual training workshop for the research tools, and follow the technical advice provided throughout the assessment.

Expected deliverables, level of efforts and timeframe

The national consultant is expected to produce the following deliverables:

Deliverables/outputs – Expected level of effort – Target due dates

• Deliverable 1: Work plan and preparation of the field work. – 4 days – 10 August 2023
• Deliverable 2: Database with information collected from desk review and key informant interviews. – 3 days – 1 September 2023
• Deliverable 3: Database with information collected from in-depth interviews with enterprises and focal group discussions with workers. – 5 days – 29 September 2023

The lead consultant is the focal point for the assignment and responsible for day-to-day questions and management of the study. Regular meetings will take place with the study team to monitor progress of the assignment, discuss any issues, questions, and risks, and provide technical guidance. The Technical Officer of the ILO Global Centre on Digital Wages for Decent Work will provide additional support as needed.

Qualifications

The applicants are expected to be individuals or teams with the following qualifications:

• Master’s degree in social science or related field (such as economics, finance, banking, management, sociology, anthropology, political science, gender, or international development).
• At least 5 years of experience with qualitative research implementation, analysis, and reporting.
• Demonstrated experience conducting research on digital wage payments, decent work, financial inclusion, digital financial services and Fintech innovations, gender equality, or related topics.
• Working knowledge of English and Bahasa is a requirement.
• Demonstrated ability to engage effectively and sensitively with policymakers, financial service providers, business leaders, and trade union leaders.
• Good interpersonal skills, ability to work in a multicultural environment and gender-sensitive behaviour and attitudes.

Location: Nigeria

Job date: Sat, 05 Aug 2023 22:02:00 GMT

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