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Australian Partners

Plan International Australia

Plan International is a development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls, with offices in 70 countries worldwide and 50 Country Offices implementing projects and programs across Africa, Asia, Middle East, Pacific and Central/South America. Plan International works alongside communities, delivering emergency response and long-term development programs to see girls valued and empowered so that future generations inherit a brighter, more equitable future.

Plan International Australia is a fully accredited development partner of the Australian government and a signatory to the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) Code of Conduct and has over 20 years of experience supporting communities, governments and small-scale private sector actors to assess, design, construct and operate and maintain inclusive WASH infrastructure in schools, health care facilities and communities. In 2023, PIA managed an AUD $17.9 million WASH portfolio, including programming throughout the Pacific (Kiribati, PNG, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste) and South-East Asia (Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos) funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the Water for Women Fund, the Australian NGO Cooperation Program, and the Asian Development Bank.

PIA sees water security and WASH as an effective and critical avenue for promoting and working towards gender equality and social inclusion through transformative practice that improves the agency and decision-making power of women and girls through a twin-track approach. Systems strengthening is central to all of PIA’s work, engaging key duty bearers and service providers to establish a conducive environment to support sustainable water and WASH services that respond to the specific needs of marginalised people, particularly women and children. Building and maintaining strong, inclusive, and effective partnerships is a cornerstone of Plan International’s approach globally. Experience shows that deep engagement across national and local governments, Civil Society, service providers and communities are a critical component in ensuring the effectiveness and sustainability of water security and WASH investments. PIA’s programming acknowledges the critical role of civil society, community-based organisations as well as local government and service providers, their inherent strengths and areas where external support can significantly improve their efficiency and effectiveness in managing and implementing behaviour change projects.

Climate resilient WASH
Integrated Water Management / Integrated Water Resource Management
Water Safety Planning

Solomon Islands Water, Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Support Project, Hygiene Promotion Project (ADB/Solomon Water; 2021-2024)

This project funded by the Asian Development Bank through the Government of Solomon Islands and Solomon Water included development and implementation of social behaviour change communications campaigns for WASH behaviours in peri-urban settlements in Honiara. The Project also included the development and testing of a Sanitation Options Manual and Construction Manual for household sanitation and onsite wastewater treatment. Plan worked with the Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project, Solomon Water, Honiara City Council and Ministry of Health and Medical Services to improve the WASH status of residents of urban and informal settlements.

Kiribati WASH Awareness Program – WASH Community Partnership (ADB/GoK MISE; 201 – current)

The project aims at engaging the broader community across South Tarawa and Buota in promoting and reinforcing a change in existing behaviours related to sanitation, hygiene, menstrual hygiene management, the safe use of water, solid waste management and climate change. It also promotes the soon to be constructed public reticulated water as a safe water source for drinking without the additional cost and inconvenience from treating the water at home. The project used Plan Australia’s ‘Climate Adaptive Pathways’ approach (developed in collaboration with CSIRO climate experts) to establish a practical Climate Change Resilience Strategy, incorporating localised risk-based water management with prominent GEDSI and climate resilience considerations, and will be contextually adapted to reduce consumption of well water, increase use of public utility water for bathing and hygiene purposes and improve household water storage practices.

The Water for Women Project (DFAT; 2018 – 2024)

Plan Australia’s work under the DFAT funded Water for Women Funds aims to improve the health and wellbeing of approximately 118,800 rural people in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands by increasing the quality and accessibility of climate resilient WASH services in rural schools, Health Care Facilities and communities. The project provides management and technical support to relevant ministries and sub-national governments in the three countries. The Project aims at improving social inclusion and empowerment in rural areas and is contributing to an enhanced evidence base relating to gender equality, social inclusion, and climate resilient WASH. The Project is focused on behaviour change through the concept of WASH Resilience Planning and follows an ‘assess, plan, act, monitor’ cycle founded on risk-based approaches to water and sanitation improvements with an emphasis on climate resilience.

Hakbi’it Joventude: Youth and women-led climate-smart regenerative agriculture, water management and livelihoods in Timor-Leste. (DFAT; 2022 – current)

This project is part-funded by and builds on Plan’s proven experience delivering community-building initiatives through DFAT’s Australian NGO Cooperation Program The project, Hakbi’it Joventude (“Youth Empowerment” in Tetum), empowers women and youth from rural areas to increase their skills and capacity for climate-smart regenerative agriculture and water management to improve economic productivity while addressing rural youth unemployment and women’s leadership in 18 communities over 2 years across Aileu and Ainaro municipalities of Timor Leste. Local institutional collaborators include the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), the Secretary of State of Cooperative (SEC), the Institute for Business Development (IADE), and Municipality Water and Sanitation Services (SMASA), among others, while civil society partners include Permaculture Timor-Leste.

Participatory Land Use Planning (PLUP) and Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (CCVA) project in Timor-Leste (JICA; 2024 – current)

Plan International Australia is supporting Plan Timor Leste to implement the Participatory Land Use Planning (PLUP) and Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (CCVA) project in Timor-Leste to promote sustainable natural resource management and forest conservation in the Laclo watershed. The project engages local communities in addressing deforestation and climate vulnerabilities through hazard mapping, reforestation efforts, and the development of future land use plans. It strengthens local governance by facilitating the formulation of village regulations that integrate sustainable forestry practices and climate adaptation measures. The project also empowers communities by supporting micro-programs such as seedling production, tree planting, and sustainable upland farming, ensuring the inclusive participation of women and marginalized groups in decision-making processes while fostering resilience and sustainable development.

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