World Bank E T Consultant (2024)

Description

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? The World Bank Group is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. For more information, visitwww.worldbank.org.

The Africa Gender Innovation Lab (Africa GIL) of the World Bank’s Africa Gender Impact Evaluation Unit, which is mapped to the Africa Region Chief Economist’s Office, conducts impact evaluations and other rigorous research in Sub-Saharan Africa to generate evidence on how to close gender gaps in earnings, productivity, assets, and agency. With this evidence, the Africa GIL aims to support the design of innovative, scalable interventions to address gender inequality in the productive economic sectors across Africa. The impact objective of the Africa GIL is to increase take-up of effective policies by governments, development organizations, and the private sector to address the underlying causes of gender inequality in Africa, and through that, promote growth.

The Africa GIL is recruiting an Extended Term Consultant (ETC) Economist to lead impact evaluations and other rigorous research on topics related to gender and entrepreneurship, access to capital, labor markets, agriculture, and/or childcare. The candidate will possess excellent technical skills (PhD preferred), have an orientation towards teamwork, and will be fluent in English. Strong French and/or Portuguese language skills are a plus. The position starts as soon as possible and will be based in the World Bank's headquarters in Washington, DC.

Background:

Institutional Context: The Africa Gender Innovation Lab is housed within the Africa Region Gender Impact Evaluation Unit, mapped to the Africa Chief Economist’s office. The Economist will work within this unit and will also provide research uptake support to operational colleagues in select World Bank Global Practices.

Impact Objective: The Africa Gender Innovation Lab has a clear and actionable impact objective: to increase take-up of effective policies that can address the underlying causes of gender inequality in Africa, particularly in terms of women’s economic and social empowerment, and through that promote growth. The Africa GIL aims to do this by strengthening knowledge, in particular, by producing and delivering a new body of evidence and developing a compelling narrative, geared towards policymakers, on what works and what does not work in promoting gender equality. This new evidence will deepen capacity for gender-informed policymaking throughout the Africa region, including policies created and enacted by governments, as well as common practices and program models of private firms, civil society, and development agencies.

Regional Orientation: The Africa GIL’s work is focused exclusively on Sub-Saharan Africa, where the team is currently working with the aim of building an evidence base with lessons for the region.

Sector Specific: The Africa GIL is focused on conducting rigorous research to generate evidence on how to close the gender gap in earnings, productivity, assets, and agency. GIL’s work is grouped into six thematic areas: agriculture; private sector development; property rights (including land and savings); social norms and gender-based violence; social protection; and youth employment. Cross-cutting areas include care, occupational segregation, digital, socio-emotional skills, and measurement.

Impact Evaluations: The Africa GIL is currently working on over 80 impact evaluations, with additional work in the pipeline, and requires a core team of economists to conceptualize, coordinate, and implement each study in collaboration with partners.

Influencing Policies and Practices that Matter for Gender Equality: The Africa GIL engages in rigorous research by partnering with high-profile, large-scale, innovative and/or potentially influential projects and project partners on its impact evaluations. GIL then uses its results, which are disseminated in papers, presentations, policy briefs, blogs, and in other ways, to influence how development projects and policies are conceived and implemented. GIL aims to help direct funding to the most effective programs and policies, increase the availability of good data to inform programs and policies that target gender inequalities, and increase the use of evidence to inform program and policy decisions.

Duties and Accountabilities

The ETC Economist will work under the supervision of the Africa Gender Impact Evaluation Unit Leader, Michael O’Sullivan. Key responsibilities will include:

• Provide technical support on the design and implementation of selected impact evaluations.

• Work with task teams, including government and World Bank country and project teams, in selected African countries, to identify and develop innovative pilot interventions and impact evaluations that target and test potential solutions to the underlying constraints that hinder women’s productivity.

• Design interventions and impact evaluations to capture the impacts of these pilot programs, as well as broader programs, on a range of social and economic outcomes.

• Provide support to impact evaluations of ongoing interventions, including designing baseline and follow-up surveys, undertaking data analysis, and writing relevant reports.

• Build and manage teams comprised of external researchers, government and NGO collaborators, field staff, data analysts, and survey teams.

• Conduct descriptive research and synthesis analyses.

• Prepare project work plans, budgets, etc.

• Present on work as well as provide technical workshops to government counterparts, project teams and other select audiences; organize training and workshop sessions and deliver selected contents; prepare documents, including policy reports, intended for external release.

• Conduct data analysis using STATA;

• Provide support on the preparation of progress reports to management and other corporate gender reporting requirements;

• Support country teams on gender assessment policy notes and integrating gender into strategies;

• Support the team’s fundraising efforts by preparing fundraising proposals, liaising with trust funds department and preparing reports for donors;

• Assist on ad hoc requests: project appraisals, consultant selection, contract processing, and portfolio reviews; and

• Help create new partnerships between GIL and external research collaborators, in academia, NGOs, and government, by supporting GIL’s calls for proposals and new partners, and the subsequent review of expressions of interest, and concept note creation for possible new impact evaluations.

Competencies

General Economic Knowledge and Analytical Skills - Possesses a demonstrated track record of working with economic and sectoral data and analytical tools and models to conduct economic analyses and produce user-friendly written outputs; understands underlying statistical concepts.

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.

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

Gender-related Economics and Integrative Skills - Is working to develop a stronger integration of gender issues in the current sector, at the analytical and operational level.

Written and Verbal Communication - Delivers information effectively in support of team or counterparts.

Client Orientation - Takes personal responsibility and accountability for timely response to client queries, requests or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success.

Drive for Results - Takes personal ownership and accountability to meet deadlines and achieve agreed-upon results, and has the organizational skills to do so.

Teamwork, Collaboration, and Inclusion - Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team's work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view.

Knowledge, Learning and Communication - Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner.

Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Analyzes facts and data to support sound, logical decisions regarding own and others' work.

Selection Criteria

I. Minimum of Master’s degree (PhD preferred) in economics, international development or related field;

II. Minimum of five years of relevant professional and/or academic experience, gender and impact evaluations (preferred);

III. Experience (or demonstrated interest) in working on gender and entrepreneurship, access to capital, labor markets, agriculture, and/or childcare;

IV. Fieldwork experience in Sub-Saharan Africa executing impact evaluations, including survey design and implementation;

V. Excellent analytical and quantitative skills, including a strong econometrics background and the ability to use STATA;

VI. Excellent project management skills;

VII. Behavioral competencies that facilitate dialogue with country partners and country teams, including listening skills, capacity development skills, and ability to adapt advice to the local institutional realities;

VIII. Excellent analytical and quantitative skills including a strong econometrics background, and general economic knowledge and analytical skills. Demonstrated track record of working with economic data and analytical tools and models to conduct economic analyses and produce user-friendly written outputs; understands underlying statistical concepts;

IX. Teamwork, collaboration, and inclusion – Commitment to teamwork, knowledge-sharing, and ability to influence and network across organizational boundaries. Collaborates with team members and contributes productively to the team’s work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view. Demonstrated ability to lead, manage, and motivate teams and group efforts across organizational boundaries;

X. Client orientation - Takes personal responsibility and accountability for timely response to client queries, requests, or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success;

XI. Drive for results – Able to take personal ownership and accountability to meet deadlines and achieve agreed-upon results and has the personal organization to do so;

XII. Knowledge-sharing, learning, and communication – Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner. Strong written and oral presentation skills required. Strong ability to distill relevant recommendations/lessons for clients and target audience;

XIII. Business judgment and analytical decision-making – Analyzes facts and data to support sound logical decisions regarding own and others’ work;

XIV. Fluent in English. Strong language skills in French and/or Portuguese a plus; and

XV. Willing and able to undertake frequent international travel.

Remuneration will be set according to standard World Bank rates, commensurate with experience. The position starts as soon as possible and will be based in the World Bank's headquarters in Washington DC.

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