Stephanie Mann

Location / Country: Jakarta, Indonesia
Organization: Millenium Challenge Corporation

MANN: "This summer I worked for three months as the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) intern with Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) in Jakarta, Indonesia. Millennium Challenge Corporation is a U.S. foreign aid agency with a unique approach to foreign assistance. The MCC Board uses independent and rigorous policy indicators to determine a country’s eligibility for a fixed five-year compact. MCC also requires selected countries to identify their own priorities for achieving sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. The Indonesia Compact entered into force in April 2013 and is currently in its final year. The Government of Indonesia (GoI) established its three development priorities in the fields of procurement modernization (PM), improved community- based health and reduced childhood stunting, as well as environmentally sustainable, low carbon economic growth (GP). As the M&E intern, I worked mostly with the PM project, in addition to some work with the GP project. ”

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PM Project & Mentoring Sub-Activity

“The Procurement Modernization (PM) Project is designed to accelerate the Government’s procurement reform agenda and transform the operation of the public procurement system in Indonesia. The objective of the project is to support the implementation of the procurement function within the GoI by establishing Procurement Service Units (PSUs) resourced with systems, processes, and skilled procurement professionals as per Presidential Regulations No. 54 introduced in 2010. The expected results of building this capacity within the GoI will be cost savings and efficiency improvements on procured goods and services, while assuring their quality satisfies the public need and that the goods and services are delivered to the public as planned. These savings should lead to more efficient provision of goods and services to the economy, potentially enhancing economic growth.”

Impact:

“In order to carry out the implementation fidelity study, I first attended some PwC trainings to make to establish contacts with the mentors that were involved with this activity. After establishing a rapport with the mentors, I set up times to travel with them for their mentoring activities at various PSUs. I traveled with four different mentors to six different PSUs located on three different islands. I conducted 14 standardized, open-ended interviews with sixteen individuals across the six PSUs. The interviews conducted with mentors discussed their general experience with the mentoring program in all their PSUs, with specific experiences from individual PSUs elaborated on occasionally. The other 10 individuals interviewed were various leaders and structural officers from within the PSU. As the intent of this case study was to document how the mentoring was implemented and the impact of mentoring on the organizational development of the PSU, I interviewed the relevant leadership who worked most closely with the mentor.

I compiled my findings from my interviews and mentoring observations in a twenty-five page report that was used for internal review by MCC’s M&E team and the senior technical advisors of PwC.”

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GP Project

“The Green Prosperity (GP) Project promotes environmentally sustainable, low carbon economic growth as set forth in the Government’s medium- to long-term development plans (RPJP and RPJM), the National Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Action Plan (RAN-GRK), and Regional Spatial Plans (RTRW) (each a “Plan”). The GP Project will provide a combination of technical and financial assistance to support rural economic development that raises real incomes of Indonesians in a manner that reduces reliance on fossil fuels, improves land management practices, protects natural capital, and complements efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and environmental degradation. “

Impact:

“I worked with the “Window 2” umbrella project, which involved community-based natural resources management (CBNRM) intended to fund smaller-scale projects that promote enhances management of watersheds and forests to improve the sustainability of renewable energy and/or agriculture investments and support rural livelihoods and economic development.”

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Conclusion

“Taken together the internship with MCC Indonesia was an enriching one where I had the opportunity to build upon my background in Indonesia and enhance my language skills in addition to learning about a vast array of new sustainable development issues and cultivating field research skills. Furthermore, the internship has led an employment opportunity for this year. I will be staying on with MCC as a government consultant focusing on the GP project and continuing to travel out to Indonesia during holiday breaks to help with project site visits and assessments. Considering the prodigious expenses of an international unpaid internship, I could not have afforded this opportunity if it were not for Jerry Blakeley’s generosity with the Blakeley Fellowship. I very much look forward to discussing the projects I had the opportunity to be involved with over the summer and thanking Mr. Blakely in person.”

Maxwell Bevilacqua

Country: Java, Indonesia
Organization: Ruma

BEVILACQUA: "RUMA (now transitioning to “Mapan”) is an Indonesia-based company that works on providing lower-income communities with better access to goods and services through technology. I was assigned to the marketing team to work on a project called Gugus Mapan. Gugus Mapan is a financial literacy program where the deliverable was an activity book directed towards the women who are typically in charge of the family’s finances.

The concept of the book was to increase financial literacy. The fundamental issue with our audience, however, was not so much “financial literacy” as it was “behavioral change” that allowed them to approach their finances. Specifically, within financial literacy, and at the heart of our model was savings. The initial exercises of tracking expenses existed for the purpose of drawing attention to money that could be saved and the final exercises that channeled funds into entrepreneurial endeavors were only as successful as the saving was. “

“Before we could impart financial literacy, which we conceived as “SiTaTa” or “Setting aside, saving, and adding money back into a side business,” we realized that we needed to develop a psychologically appealing and motivating way to begin and then continue the conversation. Thus we created an interactive book with a built-in friend, supporter, teacher, and guide - “TaTa”. Our Gugus Mapan meetings were most successful when the norms of a classroom were in place. The design of an interactive “textbook” was therefore fitting and it was easier to push our audience to be good “students” by reminding them that this was an opportunity to model diligence and dedication for their children.

The philosophical underpinnings of the book actually came from Alcoholics Anonymous. First, we were admitting that we have a problem, second we were realizing that there is a process

that could make them “well”, and thirdly we were imparting hope/faith in the process of working through the book based on previous successes. The group structure, rituals and repetitions, were meant to be reminiscent of AA because they contain many elements of group cohesion. “

“I felt incredibly lucky to have been given substantive work within a private company doing public good. I noted, with some humor, that whereas I had thought my father’s line of work (financial advising) was boring as a child, I had found myself reveling in the project of financial literacy. I am excited to continue exploring public good from the private sector thanks to this experience which would not have been possible without the generosity and support of the Blakeley Fellowship.“

Angga Martha

Country: Indonesia
Organization: Center for Indonesia’s Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI)

ANGGA: The Center for Indonesia’s Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI) is an institution that serves as the center for national development strategy analysis in Indonesia. It involves creating innovations and strategic initiatives that will help accelerate the implementation and achievement of the 2030 Global Goals on Sustainable Development (SDGs) as a whole and specifically the implementation of development interventions in the area of health and youth engagement. As part of CISDI’s mandate, they facilitate and drive cross-sector collaboration between public, private and civil society organizations integral to achieve development goals that are widespread, equal, and sustainable.

My role for this internship includes the following aspects:

1. To assist CISDI in facilitating multi-stakeholder partnerships on SDGs, specifically non- state actors, such as youth groups, the private sector, and philanthropy organizations in the SDGs implementation.

2. To assist strategy development on SDG implementation into the local development plan with a concentration on public-private partnership and youth engagement

I got an opportunity to visit and work together with a team of Pencerah Nusantara in Pototano, West Nusa Tenggara and to see their direct contribution to the local community in this area. It is evident to me that youth participation is a pre-condition for sustainable development and the youth need to be co-owners of the future. Inclusive participation will not see youth as an object or target, but more in developing a mutual partnership with young people as a subject and partner to development.

Private sector and philanthropy organization has crucial role in shaping development, especially in this rapidly evolving global environment where information is open and free for everyone.

SDGs can act as guiding principles for the work of private sector philanthropy organization, and provide a platform for the private sector to implement long-term goals and partnerships that will make a significant contribution towards achieving sustainable development for all.

Leah Meadows

Country: Indonesia

Organization: Mercy Corps, Agri-Fin Mobile

Leah Meadows was hired for her expertise in gender integration and assessments. While in Jakarta, she researched women’s access to financial services, cellphone technology, and agriculture information. She developed surveys for 160 female and youth farmers, while training local facilitators in how to give 20 focus group discussions in 6 subdistricts of West Java province. She conducted 25 one-on-one interviews and culminated her internship with an office-wide presentation of her 50-page report on how the Agri-Fin mobile project should change to address women’s needs.

Leah: “This internship was truly invaluable. I developed skills that complement my classroom studies, and that will make me more marketable as a working professional. This experience has strengthened my interest in these factions of international development, and I plan to take micro-finance courses next semester to further my career goal.”

Kyle Muther

Country: Indonesia and Uganda
Organization: Mercy Corps

Kyle Muther conducted a value chain analysis of four selected commodities in Uganda and Indonesia to identify market opportunities for bundling farm and crop management tools and financial services on mobile platforms. He attended meetings of the Indonesia World Economic Forum working group on Maize.

Kyle: “The internship was very useful for my career development… with a lot of interaction with high level MercyCorps staff. My main accomplishment during the summer was getting exposure to an exciting field – mobile agriculture information services and mobile money/banking.”