JOB VACANCY IN WASHINGTON!

Senior Public Sector Specialist, Washington
Closing Date: Saturday, 24 October 2009

Job # 091777
Job Title Senior Public Sector Specialist
Job Family Public Sector Management
Location Washington, DC
Appointment International Hire
Job Posted 02-Oct-2009
Closing Date 24-Oct-2009
Language Requirements English [Essential]
Appointment Type See Job Description Below
Background / General description
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 4 year renewable term appointment.

The PREM Public Sector Governance Anchor (PRMPS) supports the Bank's work on governance and public sector reform, including public finance policy and management, administrative and civil service reform, decentralization, justice sector reform, and anticorruption. The Anchor plays a key role in the development of the Bank's strategies in these areas; incubates new products; promotes access to knowledge through AskGov and thematic groups; builds external partnerships and links to world-wide expertise; fosters quality through advice, peer review, and participation in formal quality enhancement reviews; and also provides direct support to selected Bank operations and analytic work. The Anchor also acts as the secretariat to the Public Sector Governance Board, the Governance Partnership Facility, Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative and the Governance and Anti-Corruption Strategy, as well as providing an organizational home to the Public Expenditure and Finance Accountability Secretariat.
Duties and Accountabilities
The incumbent will report to the Sector Manager, Governance and Public Sector, in the PREM anchor and will be responsible for playing a key role in developing and delivering PREM’s work on institutional aspects of governance and public management reform, with a specific focus on public finance and public financial management (PFM). This involves playing a key role in the major outputs of the unit, including in the development and dissemination of knowledge and learning, in incubating new and improved Bank products in the relevant areas, and in providing strategic and just-in-time cross support, in keeping with quality standards. The incumbent will need to be able to draw on a variety of knowledge and skills in contributing to the work of the unit. The incumbent will report to the Sector Manager, PRMPS. Principal duties will be further refined in accordance with the strategic and operational objectives being developed for the unit, and may include the following:
• Contribute to the development of the Bank’s governance and public sector support strategy, and the creation of associated metrics to assist in monitoring this strategy, in particular as this relates to public finance and PFM
• Play a leading role in managing the development and dissemination of knowledge in public finance and PFM
• Work with others to develop new, innovative products and toolkits for the use by country teams at the operational level
• Be a key participant in PREM’s emerging ‘fiscal policy for growth’ work agenda
• Organize learning events and programs on public finance and PFM, based on suitable pedagogical methods and media, in collaboration with anchor colleagues, peer-learning groups, regional units, and liaising with internal and external resource persons
• Provide advice and guidance through peer reviews of ESW (such as PERs sand PEFA assessments), CASs, and key operations
• Build partnerships with other bilateral and multilateral donors, private foundations, non-governmental organizations, and other groups working in the relevant areas
Selection Criteria
The successful candidate will combine substantive knowledge and regional experience in a range of relevant areas with strong functional expertise in analytical writing and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate effectively to a diverse range of audiences. The following minimum qualifications are required:
• Postgraduate degree in political science, economics, finance, or public policy, or another relevant social science.
• A minimum of eight years of experience in analytical, learning, and/or operational work in relevant areas.
• Knowledge of development challenges facing developing and/or transition countries, especially with regard to public finance, informed by experience on the ground.
• Direct experience in strengthening performance orientation of budgetary institutions and practices
• Direct experience in some or all of the following areas: integrated financial management systems; treasury single account design and management; charts of accounts and budget classifications; legal frameworks for fiscal management; efficiency analysis (such as DEA); and intergovernmental fiscal relations.
• Strong analytical skills, and ability to quickly grasp new ideas and synthesize, analyze, and present material from a diverse range of sources.
• Experience organizing learning and outreach events and programs
• Strong knowledge and understanding of World Bank Group operations policies, procedures, and strategic directions.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English; competency in one or more other languages would be a plus.
The World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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