Reforming maternity leave in Papua New Guinea

Context

The PNG Business Coalition for Women (BCFW) represents the voice of private sector actors committed to eliminating all forms of violence against women and increasing business and economic opportunities for women. It was established in 2014 and gathers over 80 members of all size, from SMEs to larger companies, as well as public employers.

Objective

The ICR intervention aimed to support the BCFW to effectively engage with policy- and law-makers to develop gender-sensitive business environment reforms (BER), more specifically with a focus on the revision of Chapter 373 of the Employment Act 1978, to influence the final draft of the reform that will be voted on in Parliament and include provisions for paid maternity leave that would align with international standards.

Papua New Guinea BCFW 1_Christopher Jacobs, Evonne Kennedy, Elizabeth Asigau, Joanne Neon

Papua New Guinea BCFW 2_Evonne Kennedy - BCFW Executive Director

Results

The Papua New Guinea Business Coalition for Women (BCFW) and the ICR Facility developed two policy briefs to support the advocacy work of the organisation and its engagement with both the private sector and the public authorities. The first policy is a general one on gender-sensitive labour policies titled “Advancing Inclusive Labour Policies: A Path to Gender Equality in Employment and Business Growth in PNG”, whereas the second one focuses specifically on maternity policies and is titled “Addressing Shortcomings in Maternity Protection Provisions to Foster Gender-Responsive Business Growth”.

Based on these two policy briefs, and together with the BCFW staff, the ICR Facility co-developed an Advocacy Strategy to influence the incorporation of the gender-sensitive business reforms in the revised version of the PNG Employment Act. A training and a workshop were held on this new document and the policy briefs to build internal capacities at BCF, and covered also additional tools for implementation such as using data from the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law (WBL) website.

"Through our recent advocacy, we have moved the needle from asking if these provisions are necessary to discussing how they can be most effectively implemented across all industries. The evidence is clear: when we formalise support for working mothers, we see an immediate return in staff retention and organisational stability. While there is still significant work to be done to ensure these reforms are fully legislated, the growing consensus among both the public and private sectors marks a pivotal turning point for gender equality in our workplaces."

Evonne Kennedy

Executive Director - BCFW

Based on the above-mentioned capacity and knowledge building activities, a sensitisation event entitled “Informative Breakfast Forum: Advancing Inclusive Labour Policies: a Path to Gender Equality in Employment and Business Growth in PNG”, was co-hosted by BCFW and the ICR Facility in Port Moresby in May 2025. It gathered over 60 representatives from both public authorities and the private sectors interested in building a coalition of support for more gender-sensitive business reforms and labour policies in PNG, especially in view of upcoming the Employment Act revision.

Following this event, the BCFW started to use the policy briefs in its external engagements and will continue to roll out the Advocacy Strategy and the accompanying workplan in the 12 months following the intervention, looking to influence the current revision of the Employment Act that is foreseen to be approved at the beginning of 2026. It also used the templates and guidelines developed to create new policy briefs and engagement materials.

The BCFW team engages now regularly and closely with the Department of Labour and Industrial Relations that is spearheading the reform drafting proposal for the Employment Act. The BCFW notably presented to them their key policy recommendations on inclusion of gender-responsive provisions in the revised law, including on GBV in the workplace, parental leave, and equal wage.

Policy Brief - Advancing Inclusive Labour Policies: A Path to Gender Equality in Employment and Business Growth in PNG

PDF, 292 Ko

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Policy Brief - Addressing Shortcomings in Maternity Protection Provisions to Foster Gender-Responsive Business Growth

PDF,286 Ko

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"The technical skills, knowledge, and practice we gained from the ICR Facility gave us the tools needed to transform systems advocacy into tangible results. This assistance has strengthened our capacity to meaningfully tap into the policy influence space and ensuring voices are heard at national level. We have been able to analyse policies, communicate evidence-based advocacy, and engage with stakeholders effectively to push for our agenda."

Sheena Puayil

Advocacy Officer- PNG-BCFW

Learn about advocacy efforts from LinkedIn:

PNG Business Coalition for Women, August 2025