GBLCAREERS

We recognize that poverty has no borders. Neither does excellence. We are continually in search of the brightest, most talented individuals from around the globe.

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 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 GP, as reflected in the Agriculture Action Plan, is to help client countries one the issues mentioned above. Our current work program (150+ operations) consists of engagement in policy dialogue, investment, 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, (iv) reduce risk, vulnerability, and gender inequality, and (v) enhance environmental services and sustainability.

The Agriculture GP is led by a Senior Director, who has overall responsibility for the GP. The Senior Director is assisted by the Director, who serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the Practice. The Agriculture GP Management Team, which is the group that leads and manages the GP, consists of the Directors mentioned above and ten Agriculture Practice Managers, who manage the roughly 280 staff working on Agriculture in all six Regions and on global programs. About a third of the staff are located in Country Offices.
The Agriculture 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.

Donor coordination in the Ethiopian Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Economic Development Sector

Following an official request to the Development Assistance Group (DAG) by Ethiopia’s Minister of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED), and in alignment with the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness principles of local ownership, improved donor coordination, results-based approach, and mutual accountability, the Rural Economic Development and Food Security Sector Working Group (RED&FS SWG) was formally established in April 2008. The Government of Ethiopia defined the objectives of the RED & FS sector working group (SWG) as follows:
• Program / Policy Review and Reform: discuss progress and reform implementation of the specific programs or policies of the sector. The SWG is expected to contribute technical input to the review and reform discussion;
• Implementation: the SWG will identify ways for enhancing capacity for program planning and implementation. It will discuss and recommend solutions to overcome bottlenecks for implementation, and will encourage development partners to mobilize and provide additional support to the sector;
• Monitoring and Evaluation: the SWG will follow-up sector program implementation and progress towards GTP objectives and MDG goals.
• Harmonization: the SWG will dialogue on harmonization of donor procedures; aid alignment to Government priorities, to national processes and sector programs; use of national systems; ensuring Government ownership and leadership and other aspects of the aid effectiveness agenda at sectoral level.

Under the SWG, five Technical Committees (TCs) are established in each of the following thematic areas: 1) Agricultural Growth, 2) Sustainable Land Management, 3) Rural Job Opportunity Creation and Food Security 4) Livestock and Fisheries Production and Marketing and 5) Animal Health and Feed Quality. Each TC is chaired by the respective State Minister within either the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources (MoANR) or the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries (MoLF) and is co-chaired by two representatives of the Development Assistance Group (DAG) , with membership drawn from government, DAG members, and other actors active in the thematic area. Additionally, and as required, the SWG Executive Committee may establish ad hoc taskforce(s) to advance issues of importance that cut across both Federal Ministries. Each taskforce will operate under the guidance of a government representative.

As affirmed by MoFED, and reaffirmed in the CAADP Compact for Ethiopia which was signed by the Minister of MoA and its DAG partners, and further reaffirmed with agreement from the Federal Minister of Livestock and Fisheries, the RED & FS SWG is the principal conduit through which key policy, programming, and technical issues under each thematic area are to be discussed and agreed jointly by GoE and DAG representatives. MoANR and MoLF will communicate key policy, programme and technical issues to DAG members through the RED & FS SWG.

To facilitate the work of the RED&FS SWG, strengthen linkages among the TCs and meet its information and communication needs, a RED & FS Secretariat has been established. It is principally composed of three people: a government coordinator, an M&E specialist and a donor coordinator. Also on the Secretariat are technical assistance and administrative staff. The Secretariat is based within the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the donor coordinator is expected to collaborate with the Secretariat at MoANR on a daily basis. The Secretariat is responsible for collaborating with the Government Chair and Donor Co-Chairs of the RED&FS SWG to ensure effective delivery of the mandate of the SWG. The core functions of the Secretariat fall under the following headings:

Knowledge Management
• Monitoring & follow-up on donor support through: establish and maintain a database of donor supported development programming; providing periodic analysis of investment balance between RED & FS thematic areas, geographic coverage, alignment with RED&FS thematic areas, and sector coverage, with a view to promoting further alignment and harmonization.
• Arrange at least two RED & FS knowledge events per year, showcasing best practices with a view to promoting policy dialogue and sharing best practices and lessons learned from GoE and DAG-supported programming;
• Establish a repository of GOE policies, strategies, guidelines, laws and regulations, and lessons from past and ongoing programming.

Networking and Coordination
• Update and maintain network (through regular meetings, exchange of information) to ensure that priorities and concerns of all actors are reflected in RED & FS dialogue;
• Assist the SWG and the five TCs to organize regular meetings and prepare (and monitor) annual work plans;
• Define a work plan to better integrate the four RED &FS TCs, i.e. Livestock and Fisheries, Food Security and Rural Job Creation, Sustainable Land Management, and Agricultural Growth;
• Facilitate the monitoring and evaluation of alignment and harmonization efforts by DAG members;

Communication
• Record minutes and decisions during Executive Committee and related meetings, facilitate information sharing, including upcoming missions and schedule of events, ideally by means of a website; and other related duties as determined by the Chair and Co-chairs;
• Produce biannually a newsletter of the RED-FS SWG and provide inputs into DAG Secretariat newsletter;
• Maintain the RED & FS website to facilitate communications.

Program Support
• Facilitate and coordinate analytical work related to the GTP and its annual reviews and to the development of other strategic sectoral documents;
• Facilitate and coordinate analytical work and inputs assessment and updates of the Agricultural Sector Strategy for Agricultural Development (PIF), including its roadmap and reflection in the annual RED&FS work plans;
• Facilitate the formulation of annual priority programmes as approved by the RED & FS Chair and Co-chairs.

Ethiopian National Agricultural Investment Framework (NAIF).
• The RED&FS Secretariat, including the Donor Coordinator, will play a central role in the process of development of the new Ethiopian NAIF. The Secretariat will be responsible for establishing a Steering Committee to provide general oversight to the process and will engage with the Steering Committee by providing logistical support and strategic advice. The Secretariat will write Terms of Reference for any consultants engaged in the process and will be the regular point of supervision, advice and support to those consultants. Through all this process, the Donor Coordinator will provide a Development Partners perspective to the procedure.

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.

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 2 year term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities:

Donor Coordinator position will be responsible for the following tasks:

1) Inform and advise the Development Partner Co-Chairs and the broad Development Partner members on emerging and evolving issues within the agriculture sector by:
a) Organizing a formal bi-weekly meeting with the Sector Co-Chairs and support this with a written summary of on-going issues that require their awareness, discussion and mutual action;
b) Maintaining constant informal communication with the Sector, and Technical Committee development partner Co-Chairs and members, to keep them informed of developments within their sectors and discuss appropriate actions;
c) On a regular (three month) basis, or as needed on the advice of the Sector Co-Chairs, organizing a meeting of the broad Development Partner institutions in order to discuss topics of mutual interest and facilitate the establishment of common Development Partner positions and approaches on issues.

2) Through the Office of the Secretariat, advise the government on Development Partners’ positions on strategic issues by:
a) Providing a Development Partner perspective on any initiative (Terms of Reference, Statement of Work etc.) proposed by the Secretariat;
b) Providing recommendations for specific Development Partner individuals and institutions to be represented on specific joint committees, teams and joint initiatives.

3) Support the effective operation of RED&FS’s Technical Committees by:
a) Facilitating Government Chairs and Development Partner Co-Chairs to maintain a regular platform meeting schedule;
b) Providing logistical support to organize those meetings and advising government on appropriate Development Partner institutions that should be engaged;
c) Maintaining a record of the meetings and ensure follow-up on assigned actions;
d) Assisting the Technical Committees in the creation of their annual Action Plans;
e) Drafting, as required: Terms of Reference for any initiative undertaken by the platforms.

4) Develop and facilitate the tracking of progress within RED&FS thematic areas toward GTP 2 commitments by:
a) Providing advisory support to the development of the “Agriculture Information Management” platform;
b) Supporting development partner institutions to record their development portfolios within the database.
5) Conceptualize, propose and develop knowledge sharing activities that will lead to a strengthened rural economic development and food security programming in Ethiopia by:
a) Selecting and distributing to the broad RED&FS community a bi-weekly digest of knowledge products, relevant to the Ethiopian agriculture and rural development sector;
b) Providing a conduit where government and Development Partners can disseminate knowledge and awareness of activities.

6) In collaboration with the RED&FS government coordinator, prepare an annual RED&FS Secretariat work plan, which will be endorsed by the Government of Ethiopia and Development Partners. This work plan will form the specific basis for the Donor Coordinator’s work, activities and deliverables.

7) Support the development of the new Ethiopian NAIF by:
a) Establishing, in collaboration with the Secretariat, a Steering Committee to provide general oversight to the process;
b) Providing logistical support and strategic advice to the Steering Committee;
c) Drafting Terms of Reference for any consultants engaged in the process, advising and supervising the work of the consultants;
d) Providing a Development Partners perspective to the NAIF process

Selection Criteria:

a) Masters degree or equivalent, and a minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
b) Management or coordination experience with joint donor-funded development programmes, and programme-based approaches.
c) Demonstrated ability to manage / coordinate multi-disciplinary teams.
d) Excellent facilitation, negotiation and conflict resolution skills.
e) Demonstrated ability to be highly operational, with a hands-on and problem-solving approach.
f) Strong interpersonal and excellent communication skills.
g) Strong ability to build relationships/partnerships, to be action- and service-oriented, and to work harmoniously with persons of different nationalities and levels of responsibilities.
h) High computer literacy.
i) Up-to-date knowledge of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and its subsequent events and institutional arrangements.
j) Up-to-date knowledge of current agriculture, livestock, natural resource management and food security topics and issues in Ethiopia.
k) Fluency in oral and written English.

Apply Now