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

We are on a mission to change the world; do you want to join us where it matters the most? Invest in your personal and professional development and acquire the skills that are vital for a global career in international development.

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. Visit www.worldbank.org.

REGIONAL CONTEXT

Western and Central Africa (Western and Central Africa (AFW) Region: https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/western-and-central-africa) is a region with diverse cultures, beliefs, languages, and lifestyles – marked by contrasts of stability and conflict, affluence, and poverty. Home to about half a billion people, it encompasses 23 countries stretching from the westernmost point of Africa across the equator and partly along the Atlantic Ocean to the Republic of Congo in the South. The sub-region is rich in resources and brimming of opportunities. It made impressive progress in regional cooperation and includes two monetary unions - the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) that cover 13 countries between them.

The World Bank Western and Central Africa Region, comprised of approximately 1,139 staff mostly based in about 23 country offices, is committed to helping countries to realize their considerable development potential and become more competitive in the global economy by focusing on the following priorities: (i) Creating Jobs and Transforming Economies: We are working with countries across Africa to stimulate job creation and economic transformation by leveraging all sources of finance, expertise, and solutions to promote investment. (ii) Building up the Digital Economy: We are supporting Africa’s vision to ensure that every African individual, business, and government is connected by 2030; (iii) Institutions more Efficient and Accountable: Our support is helping governments strengthen public policy processes, manage resources effectively, and reinforce fair and reliable delivery of public services; (iv) Investing in People: We are at the forefront of helping African countries accelerate human capital gains and empower women by improving their access to education and skills acquisition, sexual and reproductive health services, and employment opportunities (v) Supporting Climate Change Mitigation and Adaption: In the face of increasing climate-related risks, we are working with African countries to advance efforts to adopt renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture, and green infrastructure; (vi) Addressing the Drivers of Fragility, Conflict and Violence: Given the cross-border nature of conflicts in Africa, we are employing an approach that simultaneously focuses on the drivers of fragility while also supporting well-targeted regional initiatives to create opportunities for peace and shared prosperity and (vii) Building Partnerships and Working across the African Continent: We are scaling up our work on regional integration, taking a holistic view of the continent that covers both North and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Sectoral Context

Agriculture is an essential pathway to meeting the World Bank Group’s (WBG) twin goals—eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 and promoting shared prosperity. Food production must increase by at least 35 percent to meet the needs of the rising global population. Thus, ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity cannot be achieved without more and better investment in agriculture, food security, and nutrition. Meeting today’s challenges on the food and agriculture agenda will require major strides in agricultural innovation and climate smart agriculture, efficiency in food production and distribution systems, promoting environmentally and socially sustainable production practices, strengthening agricultural policy and institutions, supporting agribusiness value chains, and joint private and public sector action. The Agriculture and Food Global Practice (GP) of the WBG, working closely with 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.

To help the achievement of the twin goals, the strategic focus of the Agriculture and Food GP is to help client countries on the issues mentioned above. Areas of focus include, among other: (i) increasing smallholder agricultural productivity, and its resilience through support to improved land and water management in irrigated and rain-fed areas; (ii) linking farmers to markets and strengthening value chains through support for improved infrastructure, information technology, postharvest handling; etc.; (iii) facilitating rural nonfarm income by improving the rural investment climate and skills development; (iv) reducing risk, vulnerability and gender inequality through support to risk management mechanisms; and (v) enhancing environmental services and sustainability.

The work program of the Agriculture and Food GP in Central and West Africa spans across 23 countries and supports projects/programs and non-lending services aimed primarily at inclusive growth through increased agricultural productivity, food security, and rural non-farm incomes and employment while protecting the quality of the environment. The GP’s program in the region is central to achieving the Bank's Mission of reducing poverty given that: (i) the majority of the Region’s poor live and work in agriculture; (ii) the demand for food in the region is expected to significantly increase over the next decades; and (iii) the pressure on natural resources in rural areas is expected to worsen.

The Agriculture and Food GP works with and across multiple sectors, in recognition of the fact that Agriculture outcomes often depend on actions that lie outside the Practice, and the GP actively contributes to work managed by other Global Practices. Accordingly, a capacity to work across GP boundaries, forge coalitions and influence multi-practice solutions is essential for achieving the major objectives of improving agriculture outcomes.

The Agriculture and Food GP seeks an Extended Term Consultant (ETC) based in Washington DC to support analytical and operational work in the Republic of Ghana. The Bank is active in Ghana with a large and diverse portfolio of agricultural projects, aligning with the World Bank Group’s objective to help Ghana towards creating a dynamic and diversified economy, greener job opportunities, for a more resilient and inclusive society.

Agriculture in the Republique of Ghana

The Ghanaian economy relies heavily on the agricultural sector, which contributed approximately 21 percent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and generated employment for around 41 percent of the workforce over the past decade. It remains the primary source of income and livelihood for rural households, with over 65 percent of rural dwellers employed in the sector. Additionally, Ghana has earned a prominent global position as one of the largest producers and exporters of cocoa, accounting for approximately three-quarters of the nation's agricultural exports.

Despite recent increases in productivity, the agricultural sector faces several persistent challenges that hinder its ability to achieve stronger, more inclusive, and resilient growth. These challenges encompass issues related to the supply, demand, and adequate use of modern inputs and complementary services, the lack of essential infrastructure, limited processing capabilities, and inefficiencies within marketing systems. Furthermore, the impact of climate change introduces unpredictability in rainfall patterns, elevated temperatures, and prolonged dry spells, further complicating the sector's outlook.

In response to these challenges, the Government of Ghana has implemented a series of programs and projects aligned with the Food and Agriculture Sector Development Policy (FASDEP II). These initiatives receive support from international organizations such as the World Bank, which actively collaborates with the Ghanaian government to address agricultural issues. Prominent projects include the Tree Crops Diversification Project (TCDP), which aims to enhance economic, climate, and social resilience within specific tree crop value chains, including cocoa, cashew, coconut, and rubber. Additionally, the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP) is a regional project designed to bolster food security preparedness and enhance the resilience of food systems in participating countries. Analytical endeavors, such as the comprehensive assessment of public expenditures in agriculture, provide valuable insights and recommendations for enhancing equity, efficiency, and sustainable growth in this critical sector. Moreover, Ghana is a beneficiary of the Food Systems 2030 (FS2030) Trust Fund hosted by the World Bank's Agriculture and Food Global Practice (AGF GP), established to address the multifaceted health, environmental, and economic challenges arising from the current global food system.

1- Description of Duties and Accountabilities:

The ET Consultant will be mapped to SAWA1 and report to the Practice Manager of the Unit. His/Her primary role will be to lead and supervise technical assistance activities undertaken to inform the Government of Ghana’s repurposing agenda. The two main areas of responsibilities and focus areas, under the supervision of the Senior Agriculture Economist based in Accra, are:

Part I: Ghana Agriculture Public Expenditures Review (PER), Price Incentives analyses, and deep dives:

(i) As a core team member, expand the breadth and depth of the base agriculture public expenditure review and recommend deep dives based on these analyses.

(ii) Work with external stakeholder notably the FAO to expand the coverage of existing price incentives analyses.

(iii) Lead and supervise the implementation of selected deep dives to increase the breadth of the PER. The deep dives must take a focus to inform the Ministry of Food and Agriculture on their new policy direction with a view of the Bank’s repurposing agenda (https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/a3c86032-523e-5975-b15d-8a5dc44e18b9).

(iv) Provide technical and strategic direction on the design and implementation of the deep dives on extension systems, seeds systems, and fertilizers supply chains, and recommend additional deep dives.

Part II: Preparation of Additional Financing and Implementation of the Food Systems 2030 grant

(i) Provide technical assistance for the preparation of the Additional Financing using the Food Systems 2030 grant under the FSRP.

(ii) Support the design and implementation of baseline, periodical, and endline surveys and impact evaluation to measure the benefits of activities financed by the grant. Undertake subsequent analytical works to evaluate the impacts of these activities.

(iii) Support technical assistance for roll-out of the Government of Ghana’s Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) 2.0 policy shift towards repurposing away from subsidies. This entails analytical works informing the design and roll-out the PFJ 2.0 and impact evaluation of this program.

We are on a mission to change the world; do you want to join us where it matters the most? Invest in your personal and professional development and acquire the skills that are vital for a global career in international development.

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. Visit www.worldbank.org.

REGIONAL CONTEXT

Western and Central Africa (Western and Central Africa (AFW) Region: https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/western-and-central-africa) is a region with diverse cultures, beliefs, languages, and lifestyles – marked by contrasts of stability and conflict, affluence, and poverty. Home to about half a billion people, it encompasses 23 countries stretching from the westernmost point of Africa across the equator and partly along the Atlantic Ocean to the Republic of Congo in the South. The sub-region is rich in resources and brimming of opportunities. It made impressive progress in regional cooperation and includes two monetary unions - the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) that cover 13 countries between them.

The World Bank Western and Central Africa Region, comprised of approximately 1,139 staff mostly based in about 23 country offices, is committed to helping countries to realize their considerable development potential and become more competitive in the global economy by focusing on the following priorities: (i) Creating Jobs and Transforming Economies: We are working with countries across Africa to stimulate job creation and economic transformation by leveraging all sources of finance, expertise, and solutions to promote investment. (ii) Building up the Digital Economy: We are supporting Africa’s vision to ensure that every African individual, business, and government is connected by 2030; (iii) Institutions more Efficient and Accountable: Our support is helping governments strengthen public policy processes, manage resources effectively, and reinforce fair and reliable delivery of public services; (iv) Investing in People: We are at the forefront of helping African countries accelerate human capital gains and empower women by improving their access to education and skills acquisition, sexual and reproductive health services, and employment opportunities (v) Supporting Climate Change Mitigation and Adaption: In the face of increasing climate-related risks, we are working with African countries to advance efforts to adopt renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture, and green infrastructure; (vi) Addressing the Drivers of Fragility, Conflict and Violence: Given the cross-border nature of conflicts in Africa, we are employing an approach that simultaneously focuses on the drivers of fragility while also supporting well-targeted regional initiatives to create opportunities for peace and shared prosperity and (vii) Building Partnerships and Working across the African Continent: We are scaling up our work on regional integration, taking a holistic view of the continent that covers both North and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Sectoral Context

Agriculture is an essential pathway to meeting the World Bank Group’s (WBG) twin goals—eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 and promoting shared prosperity. Food production must increase by at least 35 percent to meet the needs of the rising global population. Thus, ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity cannot be achieved without more and better investment in agriculture, food security, and nutrition. Meeting today’s challenges on the food and agriculture agenda will require major strides in agricultural innovation and climate smart agriculture, efficiency in food production and distribution systems, promoting environmentally and socially sustainable production practices, strengthening agricultural policy and institutions, supporting agribusiness value chains, and joint private and public sector action. The Agriculture and Food Global Practice (GP) of the WBG, working closely with 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.

To help the achievement of the twin goals, the strategic focus of the Agriculture and Food GP is to help client countries on the issues mentioned above. Areas of focus include, among other: (i) increasing smallholder agricultural productivity, and its resilience through support to improved land and water management in irrigated and rain-fed areas; (ii) linking farmers to markets and strengthening value chains through support for improved infrastructure, information technology, postharvest handling; etc.; (iii) facilitating rural nonfarm income by improving the rural investment climate and skills development; (iv) reducing risk, vulnerability and gender inequality through support to risk management mechanisms; and (v) enhancing environmental services and sustainability.

The work program of the Agriculture and Food GP in Central and West Africa spans across 23 countries and supports projects/programs and non-lending services aimed primarily at inclusive growth through increased agricultural productivity, food security, and rural non-farm incomes and employment while protecting the quality of the environment. The GP’s program in the region is central to achieving the Bank's Mission of reducing poverty given that: (i) the majority of the Region’s poor live and work in agriculture; (ii) the demand for food in the region is expected to significantly increase over the next decades; and (iii) the pressure on natural resources in rural areas is expected to worsen.

The Agriculture and Food GP works with and across multiple sectors, in recognition of the fact that Agriculture outcomes often depend on actions that lie outside the Practice, and the GP actively contributes to work managed by other Global Practices. Accordingly, a capacity to work across GP boundaries, forge coalitions and influence multi-practice solutions is essential for achieving the major objectives of improving agriculture outcomes.

The Agriculture and Food GP seeks an Extended Term Consultant (ETC) based in Washington DC to support analytical and operational work in the Republic of Ghana. The Bank is active in Ghana with a large and diverse portfolio of agricultural projects, aligning with the World Bank Group’s objective to help Ghana towards creating a dynamic and diversified economy, greener job opportunities, for a more resilient and inclusive society.

Agriculture in the Republique of Ghana

The Ghanaian economy relies heavily on the agricultural sector, which contributed approximately 21 percent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and generated employment for around 41 percent of the workforce over the past decade. It remains the primary source of income and livelihood for rural households, with over 65 percent of rural dwellers employed in the sector. Additionally, Ghana has earned a prominent global position as one of the largest producers and exporters of cocoa, accounting for approximately three-quarters of the nation's agricultural exports.

Despite recent increases in productivity, the agricultural sector faces several persistent challenges that hinder its ability to achieve stronger, more inclusive, and resilient growth. These challenges encompass issues related to the supply, demand, and adequate use of modern inputs and complementary services, the lack of essential infrastructure, limited processing capabilities, and inefficiencies within marketing systems. Furthermore, the impact of climate change introduces unpredictability in rainfall patterns, elevated temperatures, and prolonged dry spells, further complicating the sector's outlook.

In response to these challenges, the Government of Ghana has implemented a series of programs and projects aligned with the Food and Agriculture Sector Development Policy (FASDEP II). These initiatives receive support from international organizations such as the World Bank, which actively collaborates with the Ghanaian government to address agricultural issues. Prominent projects include the Tree Crops Diversification Project (TCDP), which aims to enhance economic, climate, and social resilience within specific tree crop value chains, including cocoa, cashew, coconut, and rubber. Additionally, the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP) is a regional project designed to bolster food security preparedness and enhance the resilience of food systems in participating countries. Analytical endeavors, such as the comprehensive assessment of public expenditures in agriculture, provide valuable insights and recommendations for enhancing equity, efficiency, and sustainable growth in this critical sector. Moreover, Ghana is a beneficiary of the Food Systems 2030 (FS2030) Trust Fund hosted by the World Bank's Agriculture and Food Global Practice (AGF GP), established to address the multifaceted health, environmental, and economic challenges arising from the current global food system.

1- Description of Duties and Accountabilities:

The ET Consultant will be mapped to SAWA1 and report to the Practice Manager of the Unit. His/Her primary role will be to lead and supervise technical assistance activities undertaken to inform the Government of Ghana’s repurposing agenda. The two main areas of responsibilities and focus areas, under the supervision of the Senior Agriculture Economist based in Accra, are:

Part I: Ghana Agriculture Public Expenditures Review (PER), Price Incentives analyses, and deep dives:

(i) As a core team member, expand the breadth and depth of the base agriculture public expenditure review and recommend deep dives based on these analyses.

(ii) Work with external stakeholder notably the FAO to expand the coverage of existing price incentives analyses.

(iii) Lead and supervise the implementation of selected deep dives to increase the breadth of the PER. The deep dives must take a focus to inform the Ministry of Food and Agriculture on their new policy direction with a view of the Bank’s repurposing agenda (https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/a3c86032-523e-5975-b15d-8a5dc44e18b9).

(iv) Provide technical and strategic direction on the design and implementation of the deep dives on extension systems, seeds systems, and fertilizers supply chains, and recommend additional deep dives.

Part II: Preparation of Additional Financing and Implementation of the Food Systems 2030 grant

(i) Provide technical assistance for the preparation of the Additional Financing using the Food Systems 2030 grant under the FSRP.

(ii) Support the design and implementation of baseline, periodical, and endline surveys and impact evaluation to measure the benefits of activities financed by the grant. Undertake subsequent analytical works to evaluate the impacts of these activities.

(iii) Support technical assistance for roll-out of the Government of Ghana’s Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) 2.0 policy shift towards repurposing away from subsidies. This entails analytical works informing the design and roll-out the PFJ 2.0 and impact evaluation of this program.

Selection Criteria

The position requires: (a) a strong hands-on experience of agricultural projects, from design to implementation, supervision and monitoring and evaluation. Specific experience on Ghana with the World Bank in the agriculture sector is a plus.: (b) a solid knowledge of agricultural policy issues and a sound experience of participating in policy dialogue; (c) a sound experience of interacting with a large range of stakeholders (Government institutions, donors, NGOs, farmers organizations, etc.); and (d) a strong technical background and experience conducting rigorous evaluations of projects and programs, and analysis of micro-fiscal datasets.

Specific criteria include:

• Master’s degree (MSc) in Economics, Agricultural Economics, International Relations, Food Security and Nutrition, Agricultural Development, or a closely related field. A doctoral degree (PhD) would be preferred. • At least 8 years of experience relevant to international agricultural development, preferably in the field related to agriculture policy analysis and leading relevant analytical work on agriculture and food systems in developing countries. • Demonstrated experience working on microeconomic and macroeconomic data, public finance data, and monitoring and evaluation in agricultural development projects, with documentation including high quality reports and outputs. • Excellent knowledge of various modern methods of policy monitoring and evaluation and extensive experience in applying such methods to various datasets. Familiarity with the FAO MAFAP’s price incentives and public expenditures indicators of agricultural support, and previous experience with the corresponding dataset is a plus. • Strong technical skills in the range of issues of relevance to agriculture, including in depth knowledge of agricultural and trade policy analytics, evaluation of agricultural policies and programs, Climate Smart Agriculture, environmental sustainability, and poverty analysis. • Strong experience in policy dialogue and excellent ability to present complex issues to senior Government representatives in country, as well as to non-specialist audiences. • Familiarity with international organizations such as FAO, CGIAR, etc. • Demonstrated ability to work independently and a proven track record of contributing to knowledge generation and dissemination in the areas of relevance to agriculture. • Proven sense of initiative, result orientation, teamwork and leadership qualities, and ability to work effectively across sector. • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English. Languages including French, Spanish, and/or Portuguese will also be an advantage. • Strong client engagement skills, and excellent interpersonal, problem-solving, and team skills with ability to work across various disciplines and multi-disciplinary teams; while being diplomatic and sensitive to cultural, political and gender issues.

3. Duration of the Contract:

Extended Term Consultant: Renewable for 3 years subject to annual performance review.

The position requires: (a) a strong hands-on experience of agricultural projects, from design to implementation, supervision and monitoring and evaluation. Specific experience on Ghana with the World Bank in the agriculture sector is a plus.: (b) a solid knowledge of agricultural policy issues and a sound experience of participating in policy dialogue; (c) a sound experience of interacting with a large range of stakeholders (Government institutions, donors, NGOs, farmers organizations, etc.); and (d) a strong technical background and experience conducting rigorous evaluations of projects and programs, and analysis of micro-fiscal datasets.

Specific criteria include:

• Master’s degree (MSc) in Economics, Agricultural Economics, International Relations, Food Security and Nutrition, Agricultural Development, or a closely related field. A doctoral degree (PhD) would be preferred. • At least 8 years of experience relevant to international agricultural development, preferably in the field related to agriculture policy analysis and leading relevant analytical work on agriculture and food systems in developing countries. • Demonstrated experience working on microeconomic and macroeconomic data, public finance data, and monitoring and evaluation in agricultural development projects, with documentation including high quality reports and outputs. • Excellent knowledge of various modern methods of policy monitoring and evaluation and extensive experience in applying such methods to various datasets. Familiarity with the FAO MAFAP’s price incentives and public expenditures indicators of agricultural support, and previous experience with the corresponding dataset is a plus. • Strong technical skills in the range of issues of relevance to agriculture, including in depth knowledge of agricultural and trade policy analytics, evaluation of agricultural policies and programs, Climate Smart Agriculture, environmental sustainability, and poverty analysis. • Strong experience in policy dialogue and excellent ability to present complex issues to senior Government representatives in country, as well as to non-specialist audiences. • Familiarity with international organizations such as FAO, CGIAR, etc. • Demonstrated ability to work independently and a proven track record of contributing to knowledge generation and dissemination in the areas of relevance to agriculture. • Proven sense of initiative, result orientation, teamwork and leadership qualities, and ability to work effectively across sector. • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English. Languages including French, Spanish, and/or Portuguese will also be an advantage. • Strong client engagement skills, and excellent interpersonal, problem-solving, and team skills with ability to work across various disciplines and multi-disciplinary teams; while being diplomatic and sensitive to cultural, political and gender issues.

3. Duration of the Contract:

Extended Term Consultant: Renewable for 3 years subject to annual performance review.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

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Note: The selected candidate will be offered a one-year appointment, renewable at the discretion of the World Bank Group, and subject to a lifetime maximum ET appointment of three 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 third-year ET appointment are not eligible for future ET appointments.