Disaster Risk Management Specialist

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.

The World Bank Group (WBG) sees tackling climate change as critical to the pursuit of its mission. The 2022 Climate Change Action Plan of the WBG seeks to ensure that all Bank Group activities contribute to a lower carbon, more resilient pathway of development. The Climate Change Action Plan expresses the urgency of dealing with climate change to secure an end to poverty and greater shared prosperity. It has called for focus and discipline in getting prices right, finances flowing, and working where it matters most to have the greatest impact on emissions reduction and support the most vulnerable in their resilience.

REGIONAL CONTEXT: SOUTH ASIA

The South Asia Region (SAR) has the largest concentration of poor people of any region, home to 2 billion people, with over 1 billion living under $2/day. The South Asia Region (SAR) strategy is based on three pillars: promoting growth, enhancing social inclusion, and strengthening climate/environment.

South Asia is home to some of the world’s countries most vulnerable to climate change and disasters. In the past decade alone, nearly 700 million people– half of the Region’s population– were affected by one or more climate-related disasters.  over 800 million people directly  and will continue to burden South Asian countries’ economies. Between 2000 and 2017, disasters caused by natural hazards in the Region caused damages worth $149.27 billion. World Bank estimates suggest climate change could bring 62 million people below the extreme poverty line in the SAR by 2030. 

The SAR Infrastructure Resilience Policy and Finance Unit (ISARF) works to enhance resilience by leveraging data-driven solutions, innovative financing, and evidence-based policies that strengthen infrastructure, mitigate disaster risks, and accelerate climate adaptation in urban and rural environments in South Asia. We manage a portfolio of about $4 billion in projects, analytical and advisory work in South Asia that spans infrastructure resilience, disaster risk management, hydromet and early warning services, thermal comfort and sustainable cooling, reconstruction after disasters, and climate adaptation.

The Pakistan program has a diverse portfolio, including multi-sectoral projects on infrastructure and livelihoods in Sindh, Pakistan; analytics on the nexus of climate change and development, and crisis preparedness; and key engagements on climate finance and hydro-met services.

We seek a highly qualified Disaster Risk Management Specialist based in Islamabad to provide analytical and operational support to the Pakistan Climate and DRM program. 

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

Participate in, and lead, when required, implementation support for ongoing DRM and Climate  Projects in Pakistan. This includes but is not limited to:

Participate in, and lead client engagement to ensure project progress – including conducting field missions in remote environments.

• Preparation of project related documents (ISRs, ICRs, Aide Memories, Management Letters, grant reporting and monitoring).
• Coordination with other development partners.
• Monitoring the financial status of projects.
• Drafting official letters, No Objections, and communications with internal and external clients.
• Coordinating fiduciary and safeguards inputs to ensure adherence to Bank and client requirements.
• Review of technical reports, designs, specifications, and bidding documents.

Participate in the preparation of new projects.  The role will have a particular focus on:

• Planning for project implementation.
• ToR, EOI, and RFP preparation and evaluation for Bank-executed activities.
• Data processing and analysis (economic analysis, financial simulations).
• Reviews of consultant’s reports and other technical documents.
• Preparation of concept notes, funding proposals, project appraisal documents, and others.
• Processing of packages from identification to board stage.

Provide analytical and technical input and leadership for preparing and disseminating research and analytical activities. This will include scoping and implementation missions for internal Bank knowledge products and external activities as required. 

Prepare and deliver technical and non-technical presentations to a range of audiences, both internal and external to the Bank

Selection Criteria

• Masters or higher in economics, public policy or econometrics, development, or an equivalently relevant discipline.
• Minimum of 5 years of post-Masters relevant full-time professional experience in research or applied work on infrastructure resilience, disaster risk management, and/or climate adaptation.
• Prior operational World Bank or other multilateral/bilateral experience (e.g. ADB, JICA etc.) on infrastructure resilience, disaster risk management, and/or climate adaptation is required.
• Strong experience in leading and participating in field-level work to monitor project implementation is a plus.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to write quickly and concisely on a variety of topics in a well-structured manner.
• Excellent command of English and Urdu, both written and spoken.

Source: https://worldbankgroup.csod.com/ats/careersite/JobDetails.aspx?id=28271&site=1