World Bank Group Job Vacancy : Urban Specialist

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

developing green, inclusive and resilient cities;

addressing the social inclusion of the poor, vulnerable and excluded groups through accountable institutions, and ensuring compliance with social safeguards;

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

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 mitigated.

The 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) and East and Southern Africa (AFR-ESA – the hiring unit for this position).

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 the WCA and ESA units 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.

In Kenya, the World Bank has a vibrant urban portfolio including the Kenya Informal Settlements and Improvement Program (KISIP), the Kenya Municipal Program (KMP), and the Nairobi Metropolitan Services Project (NAMSIP) under implementation and an operation in support of the devolution process under preparation. Similarly, there is an urbanization review in the final stages of preparation, which will be instrumental to inform urban lending There is also a growing demand for support to secondary cities as part of a new generation of projects in support of local governments in the context of devolution and an expansion of support to slum/informal settlement upgrading as part of a comprehensive approach involving housing and land. Technical assistance in the areas of metropolitan governance, urban land management, and urban crime and violence (in the context of slum upgrading) is also needed in response to key development challenges and Government priorities. There is also a vibrant urban program in the sub-region especially in Rwanda.

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 urban specialist will work mainly on the Kenya urban portfolio including both the operational and analytical activities, as well as be available for providing support as may be needed to selected urban activities in the sub-region drawing on the staff’s areas of expertise, and ensure coordination with the DRM/resilience portfolio in Kenya as might be needed. The consultant will work in the areas of housing, land, slum upgrading, municipal service delivery, and urban infrastructure. In this role the candidate:

Carries out responsibilities for a variety of operational tasks including lending, technical assistance and policy advisory work, e.g. technical analyses, design of technical assistance interventions, participation in loan negotiations, etc and take on the lead of specific activities as requested.

Employs appropriate methodologies for handling simple and complex procurement tasks and/or issues

Participates in developing and implementing practice strategy and assists in country-specific policy work.

Participates in missions in area of specialization; provides technical inputs and guidance to counterparts on appropriate scope, technology, costs, etc.; prepares terms of reference for project- or sector-related work.

Works independently, seeking guidance on complex projects/issues from senior specialists.

Performs regular reviews of financial/fiduciary, technical, safeguards, budgetary issues, and prepare relevant reports and updates on implementation progress as part of Bank teams.

Makes regular and as needed field visits to address issues, consult stakeholders and review project and activity implementation.

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.

Provides continuous feedback to the CMU on urban and local government issues and report on progress to relevant partners within Government and among Development Partners.

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

Works closely with other GPs and the CMU on issues of mutual interest, such as decentralization, and to provide support on projects and initiatives led by other GPs and the CMU (such as SCDs, CPS).

Selection criteria:

Master’s degree in urban planning/development, engineering, economics/finance or related field with 5 years experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Past experience in lending operations/investment projects in urban issues in the areas of focus – housing, land, slum upgrading, municipal service delivery, and urban infrastructure.

Past experience in analytical products in urban issues in the areas of focus – urbanization, housing, land, slum upgrading, municipal service delivery, and urban infrastructure.

Past experience in policy dialogue in complex urban issues such as land management, housing subsidies, slum upgrading, etc, would be an asset.

Written and spoken fluency in English is a must.Competencies: Please add as/if required

Integrative Skills. – Working to develop an integrated view across all facets of current sector.

Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena – Understands policy making process; distills operationally relevant recommendations/lessons for clients.

Policy Dialogue Skills – Identifies and assesses policy issues and plays an active role in the dialogue with the government and/or other stakeholders.

Urban Policy, Strategy, and Institutions – Familiarity with urban policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations.

Urban Services Delivery – Foundational knowledge of urban services delivery, with ability to apply to operations and analytical work.

Lead and Innovate – Develops innovative solutions.

Deliver Results for Clients – Proactively addresses clients’ stated and unstated needs.

Collaborate Within Teams and Across Boundaries – Collaborates across boundaries, gives own perspective and willingly receives diverse perspectives.

Create, Apply and Share Knowledge – Applies knowledge across WBG to strengthen solutions for internal and/or external clients.

Make Smart Decisions – Interprets a wide range of information and pushes to move forward.

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.

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