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, please visit http://www.worldbank.org.

The Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation (FCI) Global Practice combines expertise in the financial sector with expertise in private sector development to foster private-sector led growth and help create markets in client countries.  FCI’s core lines of business are: (a) Financial Stability & Integrity; (b) Financial Inclusion, Infrastructure & Access; (c) Firm Capabilities & Innovation; (d) Long-Term Finance; (e) Climate & Risk Management; (f) Markets and Technology; and (g) Investment and Competition. For more information, please visit https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/unit/fci

Eastern and Southern Africa: Home to about half a billion of Africa’s people, Eastern and Southern Africa is a geographically, culturally and economically diverse region of 26 countries stretching from the Red Sea in the North to the Cape of Good Hope in the South. Children under 18 make up almost half of the total population. The subregion boasts of some of the world’s richest human and natural resources and, apart from South Africa, the countries are predominantly raw material exporters.

The subregion harbors some of Africa’s protracted conflicts, rendering many of its countries fragile, while significant gaps in education, health, and skills development continues to keep people from reaching their full potential. This creates a huge development challenge, impacts heavily on the lives and livelihoods of people, and hinders regional integration and trade. But it also creates an opportunity to work closely with country leaders, civil society, development partners, and young people to chart a brighter course for the future. 

The World Bank’s Eastern and Southern Africa Region, comprised of approximately 1,207 staff, mostly based in 26 country offices, has been helping countries realize their considerable development potential by focusing on the following priorities:

• Creating Jobs and Transforming Economies: We are working with countries across Africa to stimulate job creation and economic transformation by leveraging all sources of finance, expertise, and solutions to promote investment.
• Building up the Digital Economy: We are supporting Africa’s vision to ensure that every African individual, business, and government is connected by 2030 – a vision that, if realized, can boost growth by up to 2 percentage points per year, and reduce poverty by 1 percentage point per year in Sub-Saharan Africa alone.
• Institutions more Efficient and Accountable: Our support is helping governments strengthen public policy processes, manage resources effectively, and reinforce fair and reliable delivery of public services.
• Investing in People: We are at the forefront of helping African countries accelerate human capital gains and empower women by improving their access to education and skills acquisition, sexual and reproductive health services, and employment opportunities. With the influx COVID-19, we are mobilizing financial support and timely analysis and advice to countries across the subregion deal with the pandemic.
• Supporting Climate Change Mitigation and Adaption:  In the face of increasing climate-related risks, we are working with African countries to advance efforts to adopt renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture, and green infrastructure. A number of East African countries are currently facing a debilitating Desert Locust infestation, threatening the already precarious food security situation. The Bank has put together a program to help affected countries deal with the scourge.
• Addressing the Drivers of Fragility, Conflict, and Violence: Given the cross-border nature of conflicts in Africa, we are employing an approach that simultaneously focuses on the drivers of fragility while also supporting well-targeted regional initiatives to create opportunities for peace and shared prosperity.
• Building Partnerships and Working across the African Continent: We are scaling up our work on regional integration, taking a holistic view of the continent that covers both North and Sub-Saharan Africa.

The World Bank is a dedicated partner for Eastern and Southern African countries, helping them deliver strong development outcomes for their people. A brighter future for Africa is a better future for the world.

This position is based in Khartoum with a primary focus on the Ethiopia Country Management Unit countries, and within this particularly on Sudan. The current political and economic transition underway in Sudan since the 2019 revolution represents a unique opportunity to restart Sudan’s economy.  The Transitional Government of Sudan has embarked on bold economic reforms to stabilize the economy, reallocate public resources to the needs of the Sudanese people, and advance rapidly toward debt relief. The Government of Sudan recently cleared its arrears to the International Development Association (IDA), enabling its full re-engagement with the World Bank Group after nearly three decades, and paving the way for the country to access nearly $2 billion in IDA grants for poverty reduction and sustainable economic recovery. Arrears clearance is also a critical step towards comprehensive external debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative.  The World Bank is in the process of implementing the FY21-22 Country Engagement Note for Sudan, within which there are actions around the financial sector and private sector development agenda. This position offers an opportunity to be an integral part of the Bank’s growing engagement in Sudan and represent FCI in a key role in this engagement.