The World Bank Recruitment for Senior Social Development Specialist

Applications are invited from interested and suitably qualified candidates for The World Bank Recruitment for Senior Social Development Specialist.

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries of the world for capital projects. It comprises two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), and the International Development Association (IDA). The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group.

Established in 1944, the World Bank (WBG) is one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for development solutions. In the fiscal year 2018, the WBG committed $67 billion in loans, grants, equity investments and guarantees to its members and private businesses, of which $24 billion was concessional finance to its poorest members. It is governed by 188-member countries and delivers services out of 120 offices with nearly 15,000 staff located globally.

Job Description

Company: The World Bank
Location: Ghana
State: Accra
Job type: Full-Time

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT

The Social Development theme addresses issues related to: (a) social inclusion of the poor, vulnerable, and the excluded; (b) promoting accountable institutions; (c) supporting socially cohesive communities and groups with a focus on prevention of conflict, crime, and violence, as well as supporting post-conflict development; (d) using community-driven development as a tool for developing local infrastructure and delivering services; and (e) addressing issues related to social risk management, including those covered by the World Bank’s social safeguard policies on Indigenous Peoples and involuntary Resettlement, and by the Environmental and Social Standards (ESSs) in the new Environmental and Social Framework. The work on inclusion of vulnerable and excluded group covers, among others, issues related to Gender, LGBT, Disability, ethnic minorities, Indigenous Peoples, and displaced populations.

The Social Development team has an active work program in the Africa Region (AFR), encompassing project loans and grants, advisory and analytical programs and active partnerships supporting a wide range of engagements across sectors, including social safeguards and social risk management; community-driven development; citizen engagement and social accountability; social inclusion; and social resilience.

COUNTRY CONTEXT

Ghana sits on the Atlantic Ocean and borders Togo, Cote d’Ivoire, and Burkina Faso. It has a population of about 29.6 million (2018). In the past two decades, it has taken major strides toward democracy under a multi-party system, with its independent judiciary winning public trust. Ghana consistently ranks in the top three countries in Africa for freedom of speech and press freedom, with strong broadcast media, and radio the medium with the greatest reach. Factors such as these provide Ghana with solid social capital. Ghana’s growth target for 2019 is 7.4% mainly to be driven by the industry sector, especially oil, gas and mining. Manufacturing is also expected to post higher growth. The country also faces challenges, including delays in fulfilling promises made by the government during the elections—such as setting up a factory in each of the nation’s 216 districts, one dam for every village and providing free high school education. Though the government is implementing some of its promises, such as planting for food and for jobs, and free secondary education. http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/ghana/overview

POSITION

The position is subject to local recruitment and will be based in Accra, Ghana. The Senior Social Development Specialist will provide support in meeting the Bank’s expanding Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) and social safeguards agenda and promote the social sustainability of its investments. She/he will report directly to a regional Practice Manager and will be expected to work closely with country units and task teams across the relevant region. The selected candidate will also be expected to work collaboratively and develop good relations with the corporate safeguards team, and the Bank-wide Social Sustainability and Safeguards Global Solutions Group (GSG), coordinated by the Global Lead.

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 Social Development Specialist – Social Sustainability and Safeguards will have the following responsibilities:

Work under the coordination of the regional focal point for ESF and social safeguards providing oversight and quality assurance on the project portfolio. This will include direct operational support to high risk and complex operations.
Participate in the regional roll-out of the ESF and its implementation within the region and with clients in borrower countries.
Undertake policy dialogue with clients on social sustainability and safeguards issues and advise counterparts on technical options for social development, particularly involuntary resettlement, Indigenous Peoples, labor issues, mitigation plans and institutional development strategies.
Serve as social safeguards/ESF coordinator for the Mozambique Country Management Unit (Mozambique, Madagascar, Comoros, Mauritius and Seychelles) and engage actively and regularly with country unit management leadership and task teams and identify business opportunities for social development in consultation with clients and country units.
Participate in cross-practice teams responsible for the preparation of policy notes, Systematic Country Diagnostics, Country Partnership Frameworks, sector studies, and research and policy development activities on the full range of social development topics.
Advise and participate in project teams to help develop operational designs and mechanisms to assess social opportunities, impacts, constraints, and risks related to Bank-supported operations; develop and evaluate proposed technical solutions and assist in the preparation of project documentation.
Handle complex technical, institutional and program implementation issues regarding social risk management and social development, and lead the related dialogue with counterparts.
Participate in portfolio reviews on selected social development topics.
Participate in analytical studies, support other analytical work on different social development topics, and stay abreast of developments in social development globally and on cross-cutting issues.
Contribute as task team member to projects mapped to the regional Social Development team.
Engage in the Bank-wide professional community of staff in social development and social standards/safeguards by participating in thematic groups, exchanging best practices, and drafting technical notes.

Selection Criteria

This is a challenging position suited to constructive, highly motivated team players with an eye for detail, understanding the bigger picture context of operations, and creative problem-solving abilities. The successful candidate should have strong analytical skills, have practical experience with participatory processes of stakeholder engagement, and be able to integrate social development considerations in an operational context. This requires strong technical competency on social issues and safeguards, with demonstrated ability to contribute to project management. Experience working in complex and challenging settings is highly desirable.

Master’s degree or PhD in social sciences (anthropology, sociology, political economy, social development, etc.), and a minimum of eight (8) years of professional experience in social sustainability, social standards/safeguards and/or social development (voice and participation, gender, community-driven development, citizen engagement).
Knowledge and experience in addressing issues covered by the World Bank’s ESF and social safeguards policies or similar policies in other international finance institutions in complex and challenging settings, and across practices. This includes experience with: social assessments and analyzing social risks and impacts on different population groups; involuntary resettlement in different socio-economic contexts and tenure systems; Indigenous Peoples’ issues; coordination of transparent consultative and stakeholder engagement processes; grievance redress mechanisms, integration of relevant planning instruments such as Resettlement Action Plans and Indigenous Peoples Plans in overall project planning and implementation; labor and working conditions community health and safety; and cultural heritage. Experience in social sustainability and risk management policy development, including dialogue with governments, collaboration in these areas with other international development agencies, corporate reviews and policy development and improvement efforts;
Experience in areas of social inclusion such as gender; conflict, fragility, and violence; and disability.
Strong operational (task management) and analytical skills and demonstrated ability to translate analytical work into policy advice and actionable, practical recommendations.
Ability to present complex social development and ESF/safeguards issues to task teams and Bank audiences, and to engage effectively with government counterparts, the private sector, project beneficiaries and civil society.
Excellent interpersonal, communication, problem-solving, and team skills, and ability to think innovatively and strategically to find balanced solutions to complex development problems, with a strong client focus.
Acting with integrity at all times to build trust and to create an enabling work environment, whether as team leader or team member.
Very high level of energy, initiative and self-motivation; willingness to travel and work under challenging circumstances.
Ability to work across practices, work in cross-thematic teams, foster teamwork, and mentor junior staff.
Excellent oral and writing skills. Fluency and the ability to write well in English is essential.

COMPETENCIES

Social Safeguards/ESF – Experience in successfully applying social safeguard and/or ESF policies to both high and low-risk projects, with minimal supervision, covering issues of involuntary resettlement, indigenous peoples, labor, community health and safety, stakeholder engagement, etc.
Social Development implications on policies, institutions, and operations –Solid understanding of the implications of social development on policy, institutions, and operations.
Participation and Consultation – Extensive experience conducting social development consultative and participatory approaches, deriving results that resonate with the client; ability to coach others in the application of the interventions.
Analytical Tools for Social Sustainability – Extensive experience conducting social development analyses, deriving results that resonate with the client; ability to coach others in the application of the tools.
Integrative Skills – Understand relevant cross-practice areas and how they are interrelated; able to undertake cross-practice work in lending and non-lending operations.
Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena – Translate technical and cross-country knowledge into practical applications and contributions to country and sector strategies; interact with clients at the policy level.
Policy Dialogue Skills – Anticipate needs and requests in the field and conduct independent policy discussions with representatives of government and non-government partners.
Lead and Innovate – Develop innovative solutions with others.
Deliver Results for Clients – Achieve results and identify mission-driven solutions for the client.
Collaborate Within Teams and Across Boundaries – Initiate collaboration across boundaries and broadly across the World Bank Group and bring differing ideas into the forefront.
Create, Apply and Share Knowledge – Create, apply and share knowledge from across and outside WBG to strengthen internal and or external client solutions.
Make Smart Decisions – Recommend and take decisive action.

How to Apply

Candidates who have met the above criteria should CLICK HERE to submit CV and Application letter.