Water Analyst

Details

Mission and objectives

Established in 1944, the World Bank Group (WBG) is one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for development solutions. In 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. The WBG consists of five specialized institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It uses financial resources and extensive experience to help our client countries reduce poverty, increase economic growth, and improve quality of life. The World Bank Group (WBG) works with the Lao government to reduce extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity, supporting the Ninth National Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-25, to which the Bank and other development partners contributed.

Context

Lao PDR is a water-rich, landlocked country in Southeast Asia bordering Cambodia, China, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. It has renewable internal freshwater resources estimated at more than 26,963 m3 per capita which is significantly above the world average of 5,500 as of 2020, underlining the importance of protecting freshwater resources. The Mekong River system is a dominant feature in the country, with the river itself flowing through much of it and forming part of its international borders. Lao PDR lies almost entirely within the lower Mekong basin, and its climate, landscape, and land use shape much of the river’s hydrology. Lao PDR has the largest basin area (202,000 km2) of the Mekong River Basin, as well as the largest share of its catchment and flow. In addition to the Mekong River itself, Lao PDR hosts many of its tributaries as well as several other smaller water bodies. Lao PDR made impressive gains in water and sanitation access during its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). From 1995 to 2022, access to improved water supply increased from 40 to 85.5 percent, and improved sanitation access increased from 21 to 79.5 percent. The overall gains in access belie the persistent inequalities that disproportionally affect the poor and the rural population (particularly in areas without road access). Institutional water supply and sanitation coverage also remains low: 48 percent of primary schools, and a quarter of health facilities do not have access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities. , Despite rapid economic growth and a significant decline in poverty over the past two decades, chronic malnutrition (stunting) levels in Lao PDR remain among the highest in the world. Progress toward reducing stunting can be enhanced through coordinated multisectoral approaches that effectively address the four key underlying determinants of nutritional status— food security, access to health care, child care practices, and access to water and sanitation. The Scaling-Up Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Project is part of the current World Bank portfolio and supports multi-sector convergence. This and all other projects that are a part of the multi-sectoral convergence are designed to deliver nutrition-specific and nutrition sensitive interventions that are known to impact the underlying, basic, and immediate causes of malnutrition, which together lead to a reduction in child stunting. The UN Volunteer is expected to contribute to, and directly support activities part of the Water Global Practice (GP) in Lao PDR, including support to the implementation of the Scaling-up Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Project, analytical work as part of the Dam Safety program, as well as other analytics to be undertaken by the Water GP.

Task description

Under the direct supervision of a Water Resources Management Specialist based in Vientiane, Lao PDR, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: • Assist in analytical tasks related to the Water program in Laos, including technical ac-tivities and preparation of various analytics, technical reports, and presentations; • Contributes to the establishment of an irrigation dam safety database and risk man-agement system, by conducting data mining and data verification; • Contribute to an assessment of climate risks in the water sector, and identification of priority measures to be put into place; • Assist in the preparation and implementation of works for water and wastewater sys-tems by providing field-based inputs; • Participate in Donor coordination meeting, and contribute to discussions relevant to the Water sector; • Participate in field missions and learn from activities on the ground.