Closing date: Wednesday, 4 March 2015

Background / General description

THE WORLD BANK GROUP

Established in 1944, the WBG is one of the world's largest sources of funding and knowledge for development solutions. In fiscal year 2014, the WBG committed $65.6 billion in loans, grants, equity investments and guarantees to its members and private businesses, of which $22.2 billion was concessional finance to its poorest members. It is governed by 188 member countries and delivers services out of 120 offices with nearly 15,000 staff located globally.

The WBG consists of five specialized institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). IBRD and IDA are commonly known as the World Bank, which is organized into six client-facing Regional Vice-Presidencies, several corporate functions, and - as of July 1, 2014 - has introduced fourteen Global Practices (GPs) as well as five Cross-Cutting Solution Areas (CCSAs) to bring best-in-class knowledge and solutions to regional and country clients.

GLOBAL PRACTICES & CROSS-CUTTING SOLUTIONS AREAS

The 14 GPs are: Agriculture; Education; Energy and Extractives; Environment and Natural Resources; Finance and Markets; Governance; Health, Nutrition and Population; Macroeconomics and Fiscal Management; Poverty; Social Protection and Labor; Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience; Trade and Competitiveness; Transport and ICT; and Water. The 5 CCSAs are: Climate Change; Fragility, Conflict and Violence; Gender; Jobs; and Public-Private Partnerships. The new operating model is part of a broader internal reform aimed at delivering the best of the World Bank Group to our clients, so that together we can achieve the twin goals of (1) ending extreme poverty by 2030, and (2) promote shared prosperity for the bottom 40% of the population in every developing country.

THE 'SOCIAL, URBAN, RURAL AND RESILIENCE' (SURR) GLOBAL PRACTICE

Urbanization is occurring at an unprecedented pace. Cities generate 80% of global GDP and are key to job creation and the pursuit of shared prosperity. Yet one billion city residents live in slums today, and by 2030 one billion new migrants will arrive in cities. This concentration of people and assets will exacerbate risk exposure to adverse natural events and climate change, which affects the poor disproportionately. The absence of secure land tenure underpins deprivation and is a major source of conflict in the urban and rural space. One and a half billion people live in countries affected by repeated cycles of violence. In the absence of services, participative planning and responsive institutions, these trends will result in increased poverty, social exclusion, vulnerability and violence. Finally, avoiding a 4-degree warmer world requires drastically reducing the carbon footprint of cities.

The WBG is in a unique position to support national and sub-national clients to: harness urbanization and enable effective land management in support of both growth and poverty reduction; foster social inclusion of marginalized groups; support the responsiveness and fiscal, financial, and management capacities of local governments - cities, municipalities, and rural districts - to deliver local infrastructure and decentralized services; strengthen resilience and risk management related to natural disasters; reduce conflict and violence; scale-up access to finance for sub-national governments; and reduce the carbon footprint of cities. The WBG brings a combination of lending ($7-8 billion in annual lending to cities), analytical and advisory services (e.g., social inclusion flagship, urbanization reviews, Sendai dialogue), its growing portfolio of reimbursable advisory services, its convening power (e.g., understanding risk and the land conferences), its leveraging capacity (e.g., guarantees and risk mitigation), and its ability to work with the private sector to tackle the challenges at scale and to effect.

The SURR GP covers a wide gamut

1. developing green, inclusive and resilient cities;
2. addressing the social inclusion of the poor, vulnerable and excluded groups through accountable institutions, and ensuring compliance with social safeguards;
3. enhancing urban and rural development through supporting and managing the urban-rural transition, assisting local development through developing land tenure, management and information systems; and
4. assisting in disaster risk management through issues of risk assessment, risk reduction (including flood management, urban drainage, coastal management, and retrofitting of infrastructure), disaster preparedness (including hydromet services, early warning systems, and civil defense), risk financing (including CAT-DDO), and resilient reconstruction (including post-disaster damage and loss assessment).

A key responsibility of the GP is to provide professional expertise and operational support to other GPs to implement the WBG social policies (the WB's safeguard policies and the IFC's Performance Standards) to deliver sustainable development results that ensure that any adverse impacts of WBG interventions are limited and mitigatThe World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

REGIONAL/COUNTRY/GLOBAL UNIT CONTEXT

The urban development and disaster risk management portfolio in the Africa Region is large, diverse and rapidly growing. The portfolio comprises of 33 ongoing lending projects currently under supervision, 16 under preparation with Board delivery dates in FY15 and FY16, and a large number of AAA activities under preparation and Trust Funds under execution. A large pipeline is also envisaged over the coming period, as urbanization becomes an increasing priority for the Africa continent, so that urbanization can lead to growth and high productivity, while contributing significantly to poverty alleviation and shared prosperity. The portfolio under supervision is roughly equally divided between West and Central Africa (AFR-WCA - the hiring unit for this position) and East and Southern Africa (AFR-ESA).

The large part of the existing portfolio is structured in three principal business lines: (a) engagement with metropolitan regions and strategic/primary cities, which covers planning, finance, governance, land use, urban transport and service delivery, job creation, competitiveness and economic development, as well as major urban infrastructure; (b) engagement with systems of cities and wholesale approaches to support secondary cities, including through an increasing series of PforR operations that encompass planning, service land, core infrastructure, governance, management systems, finance and revenues, and urban services; and (c) slum upgrading including basic services, infrastructure, housing, land (and land tenure security) as well as the informal sector. In addition, three emerging business lines are witnessing increasing demand and Bank interventions: (d) resilience and urban environment; (e) urbanization and economic growth policies; and (f) decentralization.

The lending portfolio is being built and scaled up on the back of a major programmatic AAA program over the 2014-2018 period, which is intended to strengthen the availability of urban data and analytics. This program includes a large number of Urbanization Reviews including 7 underway and several more planned, a spatial development research program covering 10 primary African cities, analytics in housing and urban environment, and planned analytical work on economic development in cities, and a major flagship on urbanization planned for 2015. This is supplemented by several NLTAs and a growing RAS business line including a major program in South Africa.

The staff in WCA and ESA unit comprises of both field office-based and Washington DC-based staff. A seamless integration and coordination between the WCA and ESA teams and operation as one overall unit is critical to the success of the delivery of the GP's work program in Africa and globally, and ensuring overall global knowledge and expertise flow for the benefit of the WBG's clients. While the current position will be hired under the WCA unit, the candidate will be expected to work seamless across Africa, based on his/her technical expertise and the demand from clients and CMUs.

Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment.

All others will be offered a 3 year term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities

The selected senior urban specialist will be expected to lead and support teams/projects and work on the urban portfolio in West Africa and across Africa in the areas of slum upgrading, housing and land, urban infrastructure, municipal service delivery and local governance.

In this role the candidate

• Leads missions and supervises major projects in the practice as a technical expert; interacts with clients at the policy level, organizes and manages policy development and evaluation papers in collaboration with practice agencies and donors.
• Generates 'think pieces' and 'best practice' papers; handles complex technical, institutional and program implementation issues in the practices; leads the development of proposals; leads the interface with member governments and agencies in resolving implementation issues.
• Plays key role in implementation of practice strategy; advises borrowers and colleagues on technical matters, supervises the work of consultants and technical specialists to ensure consistency and conformity to Bank standards; evaluates studies and practice-related project documentation.
• Employs appropriate methodologies for handling simple and complex procurement tasks and/or issues.
• Contributes to practice policy; makes recommendations on strategies and policy options for member governments.
• Produces major/complex reports.
• Works independently under general direction of unit manager, and guides and mentors more junior staff.
• Leads and supports the preparation and implementation of urban and local service delivery lending and analytic operations and programs.
• Leads and participates in dialogue with relevant national and local government agencies, international agencies, non-governmental organizations and their project support teams.
• Contributes to business development efforts in urban and local governance jointly with the PM and Lead Technical Specialist (LTS), in full coordination with the CMU.
• Coordinates day-to-day Bank activities in the urban sector in selected countries including slum upgrading, housing and land, urban infrastructure, municipal service delivery and local governance, as well as associated issues, including infrastructure, institutional development, monitoring and evaluation, capacity building and analytical and advisory assistance.
• Performs regular reviews of financial/fiduciary, technical, safeguards, budgetary issues, and prepare relevant reports and updates on implementation progress.
• Conducts regular and as needed missions related to lending project preparation and implementation support and analytical/policy advisory work.
• Provides guidance and hands-on support to implementing agencies and management units, assisting them in monitoring project progress, procurement processing, preparing and maintaining essential documentation for these processes. Identify potential problems and advise on required actions.
• Participates in the review of technical documents throughout the various stages of procurement of project financed services, goods, and works; and manage and monitor disbursement and safeguard implementation

Selection Criteria

• Master's degree in urban planning/development, engineering, economics/finance or related field with 8 years experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Past experience and solid track record in World Bank lending operations in urban and local government issues in the areas of focus - slum upgrading, housing and land, urban infrastructure, municipal service delivery and local governance.
• Past experience and solid track record in leading complex policy dialogue and operational engagement in urban and local government issues in the areas of focus - slum upgrading, housing and land, urban infrastructure, municipal service delivery and local governance.
• Strong track record in leading and contributing to analytical products in urban and local government issues.
• Written and spoken fluency in French is highly desirable.

Competencies

Please add as/if required

• Integrative Skills - Understands relevant cross-practice areas how they are interrelated; able to undertake cross-practice work in lending and non-lending operations.
• Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena - Translates technical and cross-country knowledge into practical applications and contributions to country and practice strategies; interacts with clients at the policy level.
• Policy Dialogue Skills - Anticipates needs and requests in the field and conducts independent policy discussions with representatives of the government and non-government partners.
• Urban Policy, Strategy, and Institutions - Solid understanding of urban policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations.
• Urban Infrastructure and Services Delivery - Deep and broad understanding of urban services delivery; can draw conclusions and make key recommendations.
• ESW/TA Policy, Strategic and Technical Analysis for Country/Sector Issues - Experienced in using key relevant sector/theme analytical tools and able to translate theoretical concepts into practical approaches for Bank AAA work.
• Lead and Innovate - Develops innovative solutions with others.
• Deliver Results for Clients - Achieves results and identifies mission-driven solutions for the client.
• Collaborate Within Teams and Across Boundaries - Initiates collaboration across boundaries and broadly across WBG, and brings differing ideas into the forefront.
• Create, Apply and Share Knowledge - Creates, applies and shares knowledge from across and outside WBG to strengthen internal and/or external client solutions.
• Make Smart Decisions - Recommends and takes decisive action.
• Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Gathers inputs, assesses risk, considers impact and articulates benefits of decisions for internal and external stakeholders over the long term.

Application information: http://web.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=8454041&piPK=8454059&theSitePK=8453353&JobNo=150220&contentMDK=23158967&order=descending&sortBy=job-req-num&location=ALL&menuPK=8453611