Senior Urban Transport Specialist

Senior Urban Transport Specialist

Job #:

req26507

Organization:

World Bank

Sector:

Transportation

Grade:

GG

Term Duration:

4 years 0 months

Recruitment Type:

International Recruitment

Location:

Washington, DC,United States

Required Language(s):

English

Preferred Language(s):

Closing Date:

3/19/2024 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

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 and promoting shared prosperity. 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 South Asia Region Context

The South Asia Region comprises eight countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) that range in size from India (with a population of over 1 billion) to Maldives (with 0.5 million people). The region has experienced a long period of robust economic growth, averaging 6% a year over the past 20 years. It was the second-fastest growing region in the world in the aftermath of the global crisis. This strong growth has translated into declining poverty and impressive improvements in human development. The percentage of people living below the poverty line fell in South Asia from 56% to 16% between 1981 and 2013. Still, the region remains home to a third of the world's poorest, with 216 million people living below $1.9/day. The South Asia Region: https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/sar.

The Infrastructure Practice Group oversees developing sustainable solutions to help close infrastructure gaps in developing and emerging economies. This is done by scaling up investments in critical infrastructure sectors, leveraging innovations that drive impact and promoting integration across sectors and regions at a scale that encourages the participation of the private sector, catalyzing financing from commercial and other sources of development and climate finance. The Infrastructure Practice Group leads the design and implementation of the Global Challenge Program (GCP) for Energy Access and Transition (GCP-E), which is a part of the World Bank Group's flagship effort to address complex and pressing global issues, such as climate change, poverty reduction, shared prosperity, and fragility, conflict, and violence. The South Asia Infrastructure Department (ISADR) includes Energy and Transport, and works closely with Extractives, Digital Development, and Infrastructure Finance, Public Private Partnerships and Guarantees.

Under ISADR, there are two Transport Units (ISAT1 and ISAT2). The two units combined have roughly an active portfolio of 28 lending operations with total commitments of about USD 8.2 billion, 5 ongoing Advisory Services and Analytics (ASA) and an average of 5-8 new lending deliveries per FY. SAR Transport team focuses on green, resilient, inclusive, efficient, and safe development of the transport sector in SAR. The portfolio is evolving to match the high urbanization of the region, and includes trade and logistics, rural roads and highways, urban mobility, rail and waterways, and road safety. It focuses increasingly on leveraging private capital to bring additional resources to SAR clients, working with IFC and MIGA and providing Bank Guarantees.

SAR Transport is a key contributor to the Global Challenge Program (GCP) for Energy Access and Transition (GCP-E), through leading the designing and implementation of efforts related to Decarbonizing Transport. It is also a key player to engagements led by other Global Practices, most recently in response to policy reform Development Policy Operations and disaster response operations. It has a large regional integration agenda and works closely with the Regional Integration team in SAR to deliver connectivity, trade, and logistics services. It contributes to, and learns from, the global knowledge and best practices in the Global Transport Department and other regional transport units.

The hiring unit ISAT1 is one of the two Transport Units primarily focus on operations in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives and Sri Lanka. The unit has about 21 Staff and is largely decentralized in the country offices.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Senior Transport Specialist is expected to provide leadership to task teams and work on transport projects across several transport modes however preference goes out to a Specialist with proven experience in design and implementation of transport policies and programs for improving urban mobility. The SAR transport portfolio has increased substantially over the past years with growing demand on scaling up the interventions on urban mobility and transport decarbonization with mobilization of private sector capital and solutions.

The position, therefore, requires candidates with expertise and practical experience in transport decarbonization and mobilizing private capital for sustainable development of urban transport, with a background in urban transport, clean mobility, harnessing private sector efficiencies through PPPs, catalyzing climate/green- and private sector financing, procurement, contract management and related technical issues. Broader knowledge of the key issues in the transport sector, including gender, accessibility, social and environmental impacts and safeguards, and climate change considerations are also required. In-depth operational experience and Task team leader (TTL) accreditation of World Bank lending instrument(s) such as IPF, PforR, DPF, etc., are also required.

The primary objectives of the assignment will be to:

• Lead and/or co-lead task teams in developing the preparation and implementation of transport projects in South Asia with a focus on Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Maldives, covering the core themes on urban mobility, transport PPPs, electric mobility, and resilient transport infrastructure incorporating key cross-cutting issues such as gender, climate change, road safety, and private sector engagement.• Contribute to transport strategy, ensuring alignment with country programs as part of Systematic Country Diagnostics, Country Partnership Frameworks, and Country Climate and Development Reports (CCDRs) to generate evidence-based recommendations for enhancing the resilience of urban transport systems to climate change impacts, and mainstreaming climate change considerations into transport planning processes, ensuring the long-term sustainability and resilience of urban infrastructure.• Advise and guide clients on overall project management and advancing sector reforms and capacity building programs, seeking to develop capacity in the implementing entities for project design and implementation, with increased attention to issues such as gender equality and climate change.• Contribute to the policy dialogue under the guidance of the Practice Manager and the CMU, with external partners/development partners in the countries and region.• Work as a focal point of SAR transport on private capital mobilization to promote the PCM agenda in the region and in collaboration with IFC and MIGA. • Provide support and guidance to improve the quality of transport projects in general, through peer reviews, technical advice, quality assurance, in-depth review of problem projects, and junior staff mentoring.• Provide procurement and contract management support and advice to the project implementing agencies.• Participate in cross-sectoral teams responsible for preparation of policy notes, Systematic Country Diagnostics and Country Partnership Frameworks, public expenditures reviews, sectoral studies, and research and policy development activities on the topics/sections pertaining to the transport, urban development, trade and competitiveness, and agriculture sectors.• Support the World Bank-wide professional community of staff engaged in the transport practice by participating in a selected number of thematic technical groups (Global Solutions Groups or Communities of Practice) and drafting of technical notes and supporting cutting-edge work in collaboration with other global practices to enhance knowledge creation and dissemination and expanding the existing knowledge base.• Stay abreast of recent developments in the transport sector world-wide, and on cross-cutting issues, in relation to the topics of specialization for this position; identifying knowledge gaps and disseminating relevant knowledge to clients; and• Represent the World Bank at public events relevant to the sector.

Selection Criteria

• Master's degree or higher in financing, engineering, planning, economics, public policy, development studies or other related fields.• Minimum 8 years proven experience in the transport sector or in a related infrastructure field, with demonstrated ability to work on: (a) designing and implementation of urban transport policies, programs and projects in a resilient and sustainable manner, with particular focus on decarbonization including through catalyzing electric mobility and mobilizing climate/green and private sector financing; (b) contract management and execution; (c) road and/or infrastructure maintenance and asset management; and (d) economic, social, and environmental impact of infrastructure investments;• Experience of working in programs financed/co-financed by other development partners, multilateral or bilateral.• Work experience in developing countries, with experience in more than one of the World Bank's regions and/or in fragile and island states as an asset.• Experience in leading/co-leading analytical work, such as on international and national transport policy, strategy, institutions and regulation as they relate to the transport sector.• Knowledge of key developments in related sectors and on cross-cutting issues affecting the performance of the transport sector, such as private sector engagement, environmental and social impacts including gender-based violence, road safety, operational health and safety issues, and climate change.• High degree of dynamism and self-motivation, as well as the ability to work with minimal supervision.• Ability to identify and develop potential areas for future World Bank transport sector initiatives based on client consultation and analysis.• Willingness to travel to and work in challenging country environments.• Practical experience in managing PPP projects and/or private sector financing and in would be a strong plus.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

Note: This internal requisition is open to WBG and IMF staff only (including short-term and extended term consultants/ temporaries). External candidates are requested not to apply. In case an external candidate applies, their application will not be considered.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

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