ETC Economist – Africa Gender Lab

Description

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Background:

Institutional Context: The Gender Innovation Lab (GIL) is housed within the Africa Region Gender Impact Evaluation Unit, mapped to the Africa Region Chief Economist’s office.

Impact Objective: The Gender Innovation Lab has a clear and actionable impact objective: to increase take-up of effective policies that can address the underlying causes of gender inequality in Africa, particularly in terms of women’s economic and social empowerment, and through that promote growth. GIL aims to do this by strengthening knowledge, in particular, by producing and delivering a new body of evidence and developing a compelling narrative, geared towards policymakers, on what works and what does not work in promoting gender equality. This new evidence will deepen capacity for gender-informed policymaking throughout the Africa region, including policies created and enacted by governments, as well as common practices and program models of private firms, civil society, and development agencies.

Regional Orientation: GIL’s work is focused exclusively on Sub-Saharan Africa, where the team is currently working in 20+ countries with the aim of building an evidence base with lessons for the region.

Sector Specific: GIL is focused on conducting rigorous research in order to generate evidence on how to close the gender gap in earnings, productivity, assets, and agency. GIL’s work is grouped into several categories: agricultural productivity, private sector development, land and property rights, and youth employment, and social norms.

Impact Evaluations: GIL is currently working on over 50 impact evaluations, with additional work in the pipeline, and requires a core team of DC-based staff to coordinate

Influencing Policies and Practices that Matter for Gender Equality: GIL engages in rigorous research by partnering with high-profile, large-scale, innovative and/or potentially influential projects and project partners on its impact evaluations. GIL then uses its results, which are disseminated in papers, presentations, policy briefs, blogs, and in other ways, in order to influence how development projects and policies are conceived and run. GIL aims to help direct funding to the most effective programs and policies, increase the availability of good data to inform programs and policies that target gender inequalities, and increase the use of evidence to inform program and policy decisions.

GIL’s internal organization and staffing: Each impact evaluation is led by a coordinator and other GIL team economists and research assistants, often in collaboration with external researchers. GIL Economists split their time between Washington, DC and field sites. The project to be evaluated by each IE is implemented by external partners, and data collection is carried out by external firms who are generally monitored in the field by GIL-affiliated field coordinators. The GIL is led by a Lead Economist Markus Goldstein and advised by a steering committee.

Duties and Accountabilities

The Extended Term Consultant will work under the supervision of Africa Gender Impact Evaluation Unit Economist Kehinde Ajayi. Key responsibilities will include:

• Getting GIL evidence used. Engage with government partners and World Bank project teams to present evidence and use evidence to build stronger policies on women’s economic empowerment (research uptake) in Côte d’Ivoire. Work closely with the research uptake team based in Washington, the economist leading work on Côte d’Ivoire, and the Deputy Head of the GIL to help government and development partners effectively use the evidence that GIL produces from Côte d’Ivoire and the rest of the continent. Identify key opportunities for policy influence at the policy and program level and mobilize the necessary resources to provide timely and targeted policy advice and capacity building, for greater effectiveness.

• Support task teams, including government, NGOs, and the World Bank’s Côte d’Ivoire Country Management Unit (CMU), to identify and develop innovative pilot interventions and impact evaluations that target and test potential solutions to the underlying constraints that hinder women’s productivity.

• Liaise with and support the World Bank Côte d’Ivoire CMU, including in its analytical work and its ongoing gender policy dialogue with government and other key development partners in Côte d’Ivoire.

• Present on work and provide technical workshops to government counterparts, project teams, and other select audiences; organize training and workshop sessions and deliver selected contents; prepare documents, including policy reports, intended for external release.

• Help create new partnerships between GIL and external research collaborators, in academia, NGOs, and government, by supporting GIL’s calls for proposals and new partners, and the subsequent review of expressions of interest, and concept note creation for possible new impact evaluations.

• Provide technical support on the design of selected impact evaluations and implementation of ongoing interventions, including designing baseline and follow-up surveys, undertaking data analysis, and writing relevant reports.

• Assist as needed in preparations for surveys and qualitative research initiatives, including in the planning of fieldwork activities and the finalization of data collection instruments. Build and manage teams comprised of external researchers, government and NGO collaborators, field staff, data analysts, and survey teams.

• Prepare project work plans, budgets, etc.

• Conduct data analysis using STATA.

• Inspect, perform logic and consistency checks on, clean, merge, and transform raw data.

• Organize (and provide) refresher training on impact evaluation for project and implementing partner staff, local organizations and primary stakeholders, in line with the projects’ objectives.

• Provide support on the preparation of progress reports to management.

• Support the team with monitoring and reporting for trust funds and donors.

Selection Criteria

I. General Economic Knowledge and Analytical Skills – Possesses a demonstrated track record of working with economic and sectoral data and analytical tools and models to conduct economic analyses and produce user-friendly written out puts; understands underlying statistical concepts.

II. Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena

III. Policy Dialogue Skills

IV. Integrative Skills

V. Gender-related Economics and Integrative Skills

VI. Written and Verbal Communication

VII. Client Orientation

VIII. Drive for Results

IX. Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion

X. Knowledge, Learning and Communication

XI. Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making

XII. Minimum of Master’s degree in economics, international development or related field;

XIII. Five years + of relevant professional experience in applied research, gender, impact evaluations, and policy dialog required;

XIV. Fieldwork experience in Côte d’Ivoire (or elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa) executing impact evaluations or conducting similar research, including survey design and implementation, required.

XV. Excellent analytical and quantitative skills including a strong econometrics background, and the ability to use STATA;

XVI. Excellent project management skills;

XVII. Behavioral competencies that facilitate dialogue with government, country partners and country teams, including listening skills, capacity development skills, and ability to adapt advice to the local institutional realities;

XVIII. Commitment to teamwork, knowledge-sharing, and ability to influence across organizational boundaries;

XIX. Excellent analytical and quantitative skills including a strong econometrics background, and general economic knowledge and analytical skills.

XX. Teamwork, collaboration, and inclusion

XXI. Client orientation

XXII. Drive for results

XXIII. Knowledge-sharing, learning, and communication

XXIV. Business judgment and analytical decision-making

XXV. Fluent in English and French. Knowledge of additional local languages is preferred.

XXVI. Willing and able to undertake frequent travel.

XXVII. Familiarity with World Bank operations and procedures is preferred.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

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Note: The selected candidate will be offered a one-year appointment, renewable for an additional one year, at the discretion of the World Bank Group, and subject to a lifetime maximum ET Appointment of two years. If an ET appointment ends before a full year, it is considered as a full year toward the lifetime maximum. Former and current ET staff who have completed all or any portion of their second-year ET appointment are not eligible for future ET appointments.