E T Consultant

Job #: req35766
Organization: World Bank
Sector: Safeguards
Grade: EC2
Term Duration:  1 year 0 months
Recruitment Type: Local Recruitment
Location: Bamako,Mali
Required Language(s): English
Preferred Language(s): French
Closing Date: 3/16/2026 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank consists of two entities – the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). It is a global development cooperative owned by 189 member countries. As the largest development bank in the world, the World Bank provides loans, guarantees, risk management products, and advisory services to middle-income and creditworthy low-income countries, and coordinates responses to regional and global challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.
Western and Central Africa (AFW) Region
We need the best and brightest talent focused on Sub-Saharan African countries in order to harness the potential and innovation happening across the continent. Africa is a continent on the move, with a young population and a growing market of nearly 1.2bn people. We are committed to making the Africa regional teams into leading innovation hubs.
Yet, these vast opportunities are tempered by persistent gaps in education, health, and skills, which have Africa only reaching forty percent of its estimated potential. Moreover, conflict, food insecurity, population growth, and the disruptive forces of climate change threaten to curtail or even reverse the progress that has been made over the past decades. 
In West and Central Africa, the World Bank is a leading partner with a growing portfolio of 387 projects totaling more than $44.1 billion in areas such as agriculture, trade and transport, energy, education, health, water and sanitation- all to support job creation, gender equality, poverty reduction, and better lives. Across the continent, the World Bank’s program has nearly doubled over the last 10 years. By 2030, about 87% of the world’s extreme poor are projected to live in Sub-Saharan Africa, so this is where our mission to end extreme poverty and to promote shared prosperity will be achieved. 
Western and Central Africa (AFW) Region: https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/western-and-central-africa
Environmental and social risk management
On October 1, 2018, the World Bank launched a new Environment and Social Framework (ESF) to help protect people and the environment in the investment projects that it finances. The effort, now about seven years under implementation, is one of several initiatives, including procurement reform, the gender strategy, and the climate change action plan, undertaken by the Bank to improve development outcomes.
The ESF brings the World Bank’s environmental and social (E&S) protections into closer harmony with those of other development institutions, and makes important advances in areas such as transparency, non-discrimination, social inclusion, public participation, and accountability – including expanded roles for grievance redress mechanisms. ESF helps to ensure social inclusion, non-discrimination, and explicitly references human rights in the overarching vision statement.
As the World Bank Group (WBG) advances with modernizing its ESF approach, a new organizational arrangement has been agreed involving “Makers” (responsible for preparation, implementation support, and monitoring and problem solving) and “Checkers” (responsible for monitoring and risk-based oversight, and identifying and flagging challenges and problems that need to be addressed) to ensure a strengthened approach to risk management on E&S matters. The new arrangements also demonstrate a commitment to promoting “One WBG” and the key role that the Environmental and Social leadership in IDA/IBRD, IFC and MIGA, will play in this effort.  
The Western Safeguards Unit (SAWM2) is one of the two units in in West and Central Africa  that manages E&S risks and covers three Country Management Units (CMUs): Cote d’Ivoire CMU( Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea and Togo), Senegal CMU(Cabo Verde, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania and Senegal) and Mali CMU (Burkina-Faso, Chad, Mali and Niger). SAWM2 (i) provides upfront advisory and analytics towards enhancing country environmental and social systems; (ii) supports other global practices in meeting the objectives and requirements of Bank’s environmental and social Framework (ESF) on their operations, and (iii) is responsible for quality assurance on all environmental and social risk management instruments for the region.
Position
SAWM2 is looking to recruit an Environmental Specialist (ETC) who will be based in Bamako, and will support the Bank's expanding Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) agenda for the Mali portfolio. She/he will report directly to the SAWM2 Practice Manager and will be expected to work closely with the Mali country unit and task teams. 
Duties and Accountabilities  
The Environmental Specialist will have the following core responsibilities:

• Work with the Mali CMU Environmental Risk/Safeguard Coordinator, the Regional Standards Coordinator and other colleagues to provide high quality technical support for the implementation of the OPs/ESF in the Mali portfolio. 

• Participate in project preparation, appraisal, and supervision, including operational missions and reporting on ESF compliance. 

• Contribute to policy dialogue, portfolio reviews, and analytical work on environmental risk management. 

• Work with the Mali CMU Environmental Risk/Safeguard Coordinator, the Regional Standards Coordinator and other colleagues to provide capacity building for environmental risk management and the ESF for task teams, clients and other stakeholders;

• Organize and deliver needs assessments, capacity building, and technical training on E&S risk management for national agencies, local governments, and public/private sector practitioners;

• Collaborate with other World Bank Group teams to integrate environmental risk management capacity development into sectoral programs with a focus on country system strengthening;

• Actively participate in cross-practice teams and provide timely and high-quality inputs for the preparation of policy notes, Country Partnership Frameworks, sector studies, and research and policy development activities on the full range of social risk management as they relate to Mali;

• Contribute to a one WBG approach for E&S risk management; and

• Engage in the Bank-wide professional community of E&S staff.

Selection Criteria

• Master’s degree or PhD  in environmental science, Geography, environmental or civil engineering, or related disciplines, and a minimum of five years of professional experience in environmental sector, environmental risk management.

• Proven knowledge and experience in addressing issues covered by the World Bank’s ESF and environmental safeguards policies or similar policies in other international finance institutions. 

• In-depth knowledge of environmental development issues in Mali essential;

• Knowledge and experience with environmental and social assessments and analyzing environmental risks and impacts of development projects;

• Experience in specific environmental areas including, among others, environment, health and safety (EHS); risk assessment; pollution prevention and management, biodiversity conservation;

• Previous working experience with World Bank safeguards policies and ESF highly desirable.

• Ability to effectively present complex environmental and ESF/safeguards issues to task teams and Bank audiences and engage with government counterparts, the private sector, project beneficiaries and civil society.

• Excellent interpersonal, problem-solving, and team skills, and ability to think innovatively and strategically to find balanced solutions to complex development problems, with a strong client focus.

• Very high level of energy, initiative and self-motivation; willingness to travel and work under challenging circumstances.

• Ability to work across practices, work in cross-thematic teams and foster teamwork.

• Excellent oral and writing skills in English and French essential.

WBG Culture Attributes:

1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

As per WBG policy, an Extended Term (ET) appointment is subject to a lifetime maximum of three (3) years. Former and current ET staff who have completed or are in the process of completing their third-year ET appointment are not eligible for future ET appointments.

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.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC, including our values and inspiring stories. 

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