Senior Agricultural Specialist

The World Bank
Washington, DC - United States
S: Competitive

Background / General description:

The vision of the World Bank Group (WBG) is to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, and to promote shared prosperity by fostering the income growth of the bottom 40 percent in every country.
To achieve this vision, the WBG Board of Governors in 2013 approved a new strategy for the organization. This strategy leverages the combined strength of the WBG institutions and their unique ability to partner with the public and private sectors to deliver customized development solutions backed by finance, world class knowledge, and convening services. The strategy has three components: maximizing development impact by engaging country clients in identifying and tackling the most difficult development challenges; promoting scaled-up partnerships that are strategically aligned with the goals; and crowding in public and private resources, expertise and ideas.
Underpinning the strategy is an architecture consisting of 14 Global Practices (GPs), including the Food & Agriculture GP (GFADR) and five Cross-Cutting Solution Areas (CCSAs) that, in concert with WBG Regions, design and deliver solutions that address clients' most pressing developmental challenges and ultimately enable the WBG to meet its twin goals of eliminating extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity.
Some 80 percent of the world's poor are rural, and most are engaged in the food system. More than 842 million people go to bed hungry every day, 26 percent of all children under the age of five are stunted, and 30 percent suffer from Vitamin A deficiency. The world's farmers and livestock keepers will need to produce about 50 percent more food to feed the world's expected population of over nine billion by 2050. Climate change is projected to reduce agricultural yields and livestock productivity, while subjecting global food production systems to ever greater shocks from increasingly variable weather patterns. Most global projections indicate that without adaptation, Asia and Africa will suffer particularly severe yield declines by 2030—led by wheat in South Asia, rice in Southeast Asia, and maize in southern Africa. Even Latin America, whose role as a global food supplier is expected to increase, will likely suffer significant climate-induced shocks, resulting in yield declines and possibly reductions in area planted or at least dislocation of favorable production zones.
GFADR working closely with other GPs/CCSAs and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), supports a Global Vision for Food and Agriculture with agriculture able to feed every person, every day, in every country with a safe, nutritious and affordable diet, and where jobs and income gains in the food system are sufficient to meet poverty reduction targets. Effective agriculture and food systems policy, financing interventions supported by an enabling environment, good practices, appropriate technologies and convening and convergence around the issues mentioned above are thus is critical for achieving both the Bank Group's Twin Goals as well as the Sustainable Development Goals, because of the sector's critical role in fighting hunger, boosting food and nutrition security, improving incomes, creating jobs, providing environmental services, and preventing a 4°C warmer world.
GFADR consists of about 280 staff, of whom about one-third are located in country offices. The active portfolio consists of about 160 projects representing approximately US$16 billion in lending commitments. About 140 knowledge activities are ongoing. Our current work-program consists of engagements in policy dialogue, investments, analytics and forging partnerships across the globe seeking to (i) raise agricultural productivity, (ii) link farmers to markets and strengthen value chains, (iii) support rural non-farm income and create more and better jobs along the food system, (iv) reduce risk, vulnerability, and gender inequality, and (v) enhance environmental services and sustainability.
The Agriculture Global Practice has about 30 staff mapped to the Latin America and the Caribbean Region, eight of whom are based in country offices. It carries one of the largest work programs of all GPs, distributed across all seven Country Management Units (CMUs) of the Region. It has an active and diversified portfolio that currently includes 28 investment operations (IBRD/IDA) representing a total commitment of about $2,550 million, with annual disbursements this FY of about $155 million. These investment operations comprise mostly: (i) agricultural / rural development projects with a poverty alleviation focus that also emphasize strengthening competitiveness and enhancing market access; (ii) establishing and developing market-oriented productive alliances between agricultural producers, exporters / agro-industrial buyers, and financial / technical service providers; (iii) promoting the development and adoption of climate-smart agricultural technologies to achieve increases in productivity, sustainable management of natural resources, and reduced vulnerability to climate change and weather variability; (iv) applying innovative, environmentally-sound and context relevant technologies to strengthen key value chains; (v) increasing prospects for farm and non-farm incomes; (vi) promoting the uptake of nutrition-enhancing practices; and (vii) promoting gender equality.
The Agriculture GP is seeking a Senior Agriculture Economist / Senior Agriculture Specialist to support the WBG's agricultural and rural development efforts in the Latin America and Caribbean Region. The successful candidate will be expected to play a leading role in policy dialogue, the design and implementation of investment lending operations, analytical work, technical assistance, and donor coordination. The successful candidate will be expected to work with other Global Practices, including Water, Environment, Trade and Competitiveness, and Social, Urban and Rural Development among others, and to provide effective, high quality support to Country Management Units and GFADR senior management.
Note: If the selected candidate is a current World 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 renewable three-year term appointment.

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 Senior Agriculture Economist / Senior Agriculture Specialist will report to the GFA04 Practice Manager covering the Latin America and Caribbean Region (LCR). S/he will contribute to the delivery of the Unit's work program to a high standard of quality, while interacting effectively with internal and external clients, assisting with staff development efforts, and strengthening partnerships across the Region. The primary responsibility of the Senior Agriculture Economist / Senior Agriculture Specialist will be to provide leadership to the development and implementation of GFA04's work program, including investment lending, advisory services and analytics, and policy dialogue.

In particular, the Senior Agricultural Economist / Senior Agriculture Specialist will:
• Lead the preparation, appraisal, supervision, and evaluation of investment and policy based operations as Task Team Leader (TTL), both of agriculture and multi-sectoral operations, assuring quality at all stages of the project cycle, bringing in global good practices and innovative approaches as appropriate;
• Lead the preparation of high-quality analytical work used to support the WBG's policy dialogue and/or inform the design of investment lending operations; identify and successfully pursue opportunities to support client analytical and TA needs, including via Reimbursable Advisory Services (RASs), helping the Region develop a robust program of RASs. Remain current with relevant major pieces of analytical work in the profession.
• Lead or participate in analytical activities and knowledge work on a sub-regional/regional level, and work with other GPs/CCSAs engaged in analytical work relevant to GFADR's work program;
• Work with Program Leaders in charge of sustainable development programs in the relevant CMUs to identify opportunities for addressing agricultural development issues, including by participating in the preparation of Systematic Country Diagnostic and Country Partnership Framework documents, sectoral policy notes, and various types of briefing materials;
• Support the WBG policy dialogue in agricultural and rural development issues with key decision-makers in governments, multilateral and bilateral development agencies, and other key partners and stakeholders;
• Identify opportunities to address existing or emerging needs in the agricultural sector by bringing in experience from other countries within the Region or other regions, using a wide range of instruments;
• Serve as a mentor to junior staff in the unit and peer reviewer/advisor to other teams working on agriculture or multi-sector operations with linkages to agriculture sector;
• Initiate and maintain a high level and quality of engagement and dialogue with key stakeholders, including government, civil society, private sector and research/academic community on strategic and policy issues concerning agriculture, irrigation and natural resources, as well as other WBG GPs/CCSAs and the IFC;
• Identify and leverage financial (e,g, trust funds) and intellectual (e.g., expert secondees) resources from other partners to complement unit resources;
• As necessary, represent the Bank and GFADR management at external events with sectoral focus, as well as lead on/participate in select, relevant corporate tasks.

Selection Criteria:

• MSc, MBA, or PhD in agricultural economics, agricultural science, or other relevant discipline;
• At least eight years of solid experience working in the field of agricultural development, including preferably in the Latin America and the Caribbean Region; demonstrated, relevant experience with an international/regional development agency will be valued;
• Strong technical and analytical skills in a range of issues of relevance to agriculture and / or agribusiness;
• Recognized substantive leadership in one or more of the strategic / technical areas noted above and a track record of innovation and integrity;
• Familiarity with WBG operational policies and procedures, and experience (as TTL or team member) in identifying, preparing, appraising, supervising and / or evaluating investment lending operations;
• Ability to listen and integrate ideas from varied sources, create partnerships, and communicate to diverse constituencies inside and outside the WBG, and the ability to work in teams and across organizational boundaries, respecting the views of others;
• Strong interpersonal skills, proven team orientation and leadership qualities; ability to collaborate effectively with multi-disciplinary teams, governments, NGOs and donors, while being diplomatic and sensitive to cultural, political and gender issues; and
• Proven, excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to present complex issues to WBG management, senior government representatives, and non-specialist audiences.
• Ability to work effectively in Spanish and English; knowledge of Portuguese and/or French is desirable.

The World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture, and educational background. Women candidates are especially encouraged to apply. Individuals with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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