Program Coordinator

• Job #123071
• Job TitleProgram Coordinator
• Job FamilyAgriculture & Rural Development
• Job TypeProfessional & Technical
• GradeGG
• LocationMoscow, Russian Federation
• Recruitment TypeLocal Hire
• Language RequirementEnglish [Essential]; Russian [Essential]
• Closing Date16-Jan-2013

Background / General description:
Note - The term appointment will be funded by a Reimbursable Advisory Service (RAS) Contract. Therefore possibility of renewal of the term appointment after two-year will depend on funding availability. - Non-Russian nationals can also apply and will be provided with a relocation package if selected. Regional Context The Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region comprises of 30 extremely diverse clients, with a population of nearly 500 million people. Four of our clients are IDA only and another 5 are IDA blend countries. The remaining 21 are IBRD eligible. Although 10 of our clients have joined the EU and 7 of these have graduated, most continue to remain active recipients of knowledge and/or lending services. CASs/CPSs reflect this strong diversity with substantial variation in lending prospects, but strong demand for Bank technical services is present across the board. For the most part, countries in the ECA region have recovered to the GDP levels prevailing prior to the 2008/09 crisis, yet growth is slower than before the crisis. In 2011, the region had a real growth rate of 5.3 percent, and is projected to grow at 3 percent in 2012. The crisis left ECA countries with historically high levels of unemployment, which are still worsening, particularly in the Balkans. Furthermore, the rapidly unfolding sovereign debt problems in Western Europe are posing challenges to the sustainability of the relatively tepid recovery. The ECA region is implementing a regional strategy that is focused on addressing three critical challenges to growth and development---improving competitiveness, reforming the social sectors to achieve inclusive growth, and making growth more sustainable through climate action. Governance and gender issues cut across these three strategic pillars. The financial and economic crisis led to a substantial increase in Bank lending and knowledge activities in all ECA countries, including in several EU members states (e.g., Latvia, Romania, and Poland). The crisis helped serve as a powerful reminder of the relevance of the Bank both as an attractive source of funding and a reliable provider of timely and quality advice. Sector Context The mission of ECSSD is to help the Bank’s clients in Europe and Central Asia to achieve equitable, environmentally and socially sustainable growth and prosperity. The particular mission of the Agriculture and Rural Development team is to work with national and local governments and with communities to enhance agriculture productivity and competitiveness; improve natural resource management for sustainable development; and facilitate rural non-farm sector growth to expand rural incomes opportunities. The Agriculture and Rural Development team pursues these objectives by: (i) supporting policy and institutional reforms and investments to enhance the effectiveness of irrigation, drainage and flood control, delivery of agricultural services, rural finance, and rural enterprise and value chain development; (ii) supporting legal reform, capacity building and investments to assist our clients achieve compliance with European Union agriculture and rural development policies; and (iii) undertaking analytical work and providing technical assistance in response to client and Country Management requests. In addition, the Unit more recently has been providing support to our clients to deal with the challenge of the food and financial crises. Working with other units within the Region is a key part of the ARD team’s work program. ECSAR provides support to our clients through lending operations and analytical and advisory services, including reimbursable advisory services. Russian Federation Eurasian Center for Food Security In support of the L’Aquila Food Security Initiative, the Russian Federation has committed to undertaking an “Agricultural Development Aid Cooperation” (ADAC) Initiative that is aimed at supporting the improvement of food security in the Eurasian region and globally, at enhancing environmental sustainability of agricultural production also and in particular in response to climate change, and at building the capacity of the Russian Federation to provide agricultural advisory services in international initiatives. Under the ADAC initiative, the World Bank, through fee-based analytical and advisory services, is assisting the Russian Federation (RF) in the establishment and operation of a new Eurasian Center for Food Security (“ECFS”), which is based in the Moscow State University (“MSU”). Through ECFS, the Russian Federation will provide research and advisory services on food security matters to beneficiaries in the Eurasian region. The Government of the Russian Federation (GOR) intends to develop the ECFS as a center of excellence that can become an important member of the global network of agricultural expertise, catalyzing agricultural development in the Eurasia Region. ECFS’s mission will be to help enhance agricultural performance in the Eurasia Region and to ensure the sustainability of rural development and natural resource management through the provision of analytically based (policy and technical) recommendations and associated technical assistance, with the overarching goal of increasing Russia's contribution to global food security. The ECFS is an autonomous national unit within MSU that is expected to gradually evolve into an internationally recognized center. It is chaired by the Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics of the MSU and builds on existing MSU competence in relevant scientific fields and educational methods, including distance learning. In providing its services, the ECFS will initially focus collaborative activities with Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia with the vision of gradual expansion of its service area over the longer term. As a “convening center”, ECFS will collaborate with international, Russian and other Eurasian countries’ national institutes and organizations. The center will engage in partnerships with these entities in order to carry out studies, seminars and workshops, training programs, and knowledge dissemination activities, in order to establish knowledge networks on food security. The list of activities in support of the establishment of the ECFS is presented in Annex 1. The World Bank is seeking to fill the position of a Program Coordinator who, under the guidance of the task manager, will lead the World Bank’s support activities in Moscow.
Duties and Accountabilities:
The Resident Program Coordinator (RPC), stationed in Moscow, Russia, will be a member of the Bank’s core Task Team responsible for the implementation of the TA Program. Under the guidance of the Task Team Leader (TTL) in Washington (for technical and overall managerial issues) and the World Bank office in Moscow (for government communication), the Program Coordinator will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the work program. In addition to coordination of TA administrative aspects, he/she will contribute substantively, technically to the program activities as needed. Selection of respective technical areas would be subject to technical qualifications of the identified candidate. Specific responsibilities include: - To be the first point of contact and principal liaison person for the technical and governmental counterparts with the World Bank. - To prepare, with the guidance of the TTL, and in consultation with ECFS, the annual work program. Prepare periodic monitoring reports. - To discuss, initiate and monitor the implementation of the different elements of the work program in close collaboration with other members of the Task Team. - Provide technical inputs to specific tasks as needed. To support the selection of local consultants (Short-Term Consultants, STCs) and to supervise locally recruited STCs. - To facilitate the deployment of the international consultants who are providing support to ECFS. - To support quality assurance for the different elements of the work program through a first-stage review for completeness and consistency with their TOR. - To support the TTL in preparing and budgeting the Work Program and in other administrative matters and to prepare progress reports on a semi-annual basis. Reporting relationships and duty station: The Program Coordinator will report to and work closely with the TTL in Washington, with additional oversight provided by the Agriculture and Rural Development Manager for the ECA region and the Director of the World Bank’s program for Russia. The Program Coordinator will be based in Moscow, either at the World Bank office or at the ECFS at the MSU, which will be determined in coordination with the Client.
Selection Criteria:
COMPETENCIES - Policy Dialogue Skills - Anticipates needs and requests in the field and conducts independent policy discussions with representatives of the government and non-government partners. - Integrative Skills - Understands relevant cross-sectoral areas how they are interrelated; able to undertake cross-sectoral work in lending and non-lending operations. - Agriculture Policy, Strategy and Institutions - Solid understanding of agriculture policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations. - Rural Policy, Strategy and Institutions - Solid understanding of rural policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations. - Client Orientation - Maintains client relationships in the face of conflicting demands or directions and provides evidence-based advice and solutions based on sound diagnosis and knowledge. - Drive for Results - Identifies the needed resources to accomplish results involving multiple stakeholders and finds solutions to obstacles affecting key deliverables. - Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion - Shows leadership in ensuring the team stays organized and focused, and actively seeks and considers diverse ideas and approaches. - Knowledge, Learning and Communication - Leads in the sharing of best practice, trends, knowledge and lessons learned across units and with clients and partners, articulating ideas verbally and in writing in a clear and compelling way across audiences of varied levels. - Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Gathers inputs, assesses risk, considers impact and articulates benefits of decisions for internal and external stakeholders over the long term. Other selection criteria: • An advanced degree in agricultural sciences, economics, project management or other relevant field, with a minimum of 8 years of relevant work experience. • Substantial experience in program management. Management of agricultural research related programs would be an advantage. • Experience with the CGIAR and in National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) would be an advantage. • Substantial knowledge of the Russian operational environment preferably including direct experience in or with the Russian organizations • A minimum of 3 years of international experience (living and working outside his/her home country). • Familiarity with agriculture sector issues in Russia and ECFS partner countries desirable. • Willingness to travel in the region. The World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

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