E T Consultant

Contract

This is a World Bank Group grade: EC2 contract. More about World Bank Group grade: EC2 contracts.

E T Consultant

Description

World Bank Group. Would you like a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank Group provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. 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, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development. 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, visit www.worldbank.org.

The Finance, Competitiveness & Innovation (FCI) Global Practice. the FCI GP (Finance, Competitiveness & Innovation Global Practice) brings together the World Bank's knowledge, finance and convening services, into a single suite of development solutions for our clients and the global community to support reaching the twin goals of eliminating extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. The FCI core lines of business are: (a) Financial Stability & Integrity; (b) Financial Inclusion, Infrastructure & Access; (c) Firms, Entrepreneurship & Innovation; (d) Long-Term Finance; (e) Climate & Disaster Risk Finance; (f) Markets and Technology; (g) trade competitiveness and GVCs; and (h) Investment Climate. For more information, please visit https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/unit/fci.

FCI in the Pacific. The WBG (World Bank Group) serves 23 client countries in the East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region, with a total population of about 2 billion people and a GNI per capita of about USD 3,862 (in constant 2010 USD). In the Pacific, the World Bank Group works in 12 countries across the region with a portfolio of more than 80 projects. The EAP FCI team designs and implements a growing portfolio of innovative lending operations, as well as ground-breaking advisory services and high-quality analytical work. This is designed to support policymakers in a broad range of issues related to financial sector development, strengthening competitiveness, and supporting innovation and productivity growth.

The EAP FCI team (EEAF2) is looking for a consultant with a financial sector background to support its engagements in the financial sector in the Pacific including both our ongoing financial sector monitoring and dialogue as well as designing and scaling up innovative solutions in climate finance and digital financial markets infrastructure. The consultant will work closely with the FCI team based in the Pacific and Washington DC and with a global network of private and financial sector professionals.

Duties and accountabilities

To assist with its growing work program, FCI seeks to hire an experienced and highly motivated professional to join the team in the Pacific (to be based in Suva or – for candidates already based in Australia – in Sydney). The consultant will support FCI’s operational program in the Pacific with a particular focus on the Financial Sector Programmatic Advisory Services and Analytics (PASA) that consists of three main reform pillars: (i) financial sector stability and soundness; (ii) digital financial infrastructure; and (iii) climate and disaster risk finance. The consultant will also contribute to the operational aspects of ongoing and pipeline activities, including financial sector monitoring and implementation of the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative (PCRAFI).

Specifically, the candidate will be expected to:

Provide operational support in the following areas: • Support FCI’s regional and global teams working in the Pacific with a focus on providing strategic, technical, and operational inputs across a portfolio of lending and advisory activities including the PASA, PCRAFI, the Competitive Pacific For Economic Transformation Program (COMPETE), among others. • Help monitor and update the M&E plan to track and report results across the program. Proactively flag issues that may indicate risks to the timeliness and quality of delivery of the program. • Under the guidance of FCI financial and private sector specialists, carry out research and analytical tasks on a wide range of operational, regional and sector issues, including but not limited to SME access to finance, payments and digital financial infrastructure, business environment issues, digital economy, entrepreneurship, and sector specific issues. Analytical tasks will include collection of raw data, preparation of descriptive reports and presentations, preparation of analytical materials and drafting of recommendations. • Draft reports and communications material to share results both within and beyond the Bank (e.g. lessons learned, blog posts, feature stories, social media, promotional project ppt etc.). • Support the collection of data and information that are necessary to support the PCRAFI implementation, in collaboration with the World Bank task teams, PCRIC and other counterparts as required. • Depending on the specific background and experience of the consultant, additional duties may include leading some deliverables or workstreams at the region or country level.

Carry out financial sector monitoring • Coordinate the ongoing monitoring of the banking sector in the Pacific Island countries using an existing financial sector monitoring template that includes data related to financial sector safety and soundness and stability. Data are confidential and collected on a quarterly basis from prudential authorities. • Track financial markets developments in real time and provide – where needed – briefings on the potential impact of these developments on the operations of FCI or other WBG activities and operations. Such developments may include public sector reforms or institutional changes as well as significant private sector activity. • Provide substantive analytical inputs on financial sector issues across the region. These may be used as inputs to Concept Notes for FCI or other GP operations, core diagnostic activities, briefing materials, or other World Bank products.

Provide other support as needed • Support the FCI team in the preparation of briefing material on country program/sector and project issues and follows up on portfolio issues. Produce technical notes, briefings, presentations, etc. as requested by Management. • Participate as part of the FCI team in brainstorming, strategy, and business development activities.

Selection Criteria

This position requires a seasoned professional with strong operational skills and wide-ranging experience in the financial sector. They will have demonstrated an ability to manage competing demands, have good judgment and mentor teams effectively to deliver results on the ground.

• Master’s or PhD in a relevant discipline (e.g., public administration, business administration, finance, economics, etc.), with a minimum of 5 years of relevant experience. • Understanding of financial markets including Central Bank operations, financial stability, macro and micro prudential supervision, and monetary policy. A strong understanding of the links between financial sector policy and private sector outcomes including investment. • Experience working on policy or operational roles in areas related to digital economy, SME development, or sector competitiveness will be an advantage. • Familiarity with project preparation/management concepts including M&E and reporting is required; additional experience with the financing instruments and operational processes and systems of the World Bank will be an advantage. • Sound understanding of the Pacific regional context and challenges. • A track record of teamwork, attention to detail, problem-solving skills, and ability to produce high-quality results and outputs under pressure with minimal supervision. • Advanced computer skills and full proficiency in the use of relevant software and collaboration applications as well as portfolio monitoring systems (eg ability to interact with online databases, download information, format data, etc). • Excellent writing, communication, and presentation skills.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

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Note: The selected candidate will be offered a one-year appointment, renewable for an additional one year, at the discretion of the World Bank Group, and subject to a lifetime maximum ET Appointment of two years. If an ET appointment ends before a full year, it is considered as a full year toward the lifetime maximum. Former and current ET staff who have completed all or any portion of their second-year ET appointment are not eligible for future ET appointments.