Regional Technical Specialist (Water & Land)

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes, and advocates at the local, national and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation.

The Office of Technical Delivery is responsible for providing expert technical guidance to IFAD teams engaged in the design and implementation of projects and programmes to deliver the high technical quality investments that facilitate rural transformation, and which comply with IFAD's mandate and operational policies. The Office ensures IFAD applies and disseminates state of the art knowledge in its investments and evidence on strategic themes and encourages the innovative application of global knowledge and evidence in IFAD investments. This helps countries tackle complex development challenges in fostering inclusive and sustainable rural transformation including mainstreaming areas. The Office of Technical Delivery (OTD) is led by a Managing Director and is comprised of two (2) divisions: the Environment, Climate, Gender and Social Inclusion Division (ECG) and the Sustainable Production, Markets and Institutions Division (PMI).

The Sustainable Production, Markets and Institutions Division (PMI) facilitates improved and efficient delivery of IFAD's corporate mandate, predominantly through the quality of the design and implementation of its policies, country strategies and projects. Key functions and activities of PMI include Quality Enhancement, Policy Engagement, Networking and Strategic Partnerships. PMI's technical mandate covers a range of themes, all of which are key to deliver IFAD's strategic framework, including: agronomy, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture, markets and value chains, agriculture research for development (AR4D), ICT4D, inclusive rural finance (including PARM, INSURED and remittances), rural institutions and farmers organizations, rural infrastructure, water, land and natural resources management.

PMI is led by a Divisional Director.

The incumbent is a seasoned professional in a specialized thematic area, reporting either to a more senior Technical Specialist or to the divisional Director. At this level Technical Specialists independently analyse technical and policy problems of concern to IFAD, intergovernmental bodies, and national authorities and provide substantive technical input to the development of policies, technical strategies and proposals and project implementation. The incumbent may work collaboratively with the thematic Technical Specialists, Country Directors and other staff to ensure consistency, cohesion and synergy in the application of technical advice and provision of programme development support.

Position specifics:

The Regional Technical Specialist (RTS) - Water and Land serves as IFAD's technical expert in the areas of Water and Rural Infrastructure, and Natural Resources Management (NRM). The incumbent supports primarily the country/regional programs at regional level by providing state-of-the-art technical advice throughout the project cycle and contributes in a minor capacity to the corporate agenda, knowledge building and dissemination as well as strategy and policy setting. Within the fields of water and rural infrastructure and NRM, the incumbent exercises a high degree of independence in providing technical support to the design and implementation of country programme and/or investment projects.

The incumbent will provide technical advice and operational backstopping across IFAD Near East, North Africa, Europe, and Central Asia (NEN) Region portfolio in water resources, rural infrastructure and landscape natural resources management. The role will strengthen integration of water, rural infrastructure and NRM into project design and supervision, including but not limited to support for WUGs/WUAs, multi-use water systems, watershed approaches and national and regional policy dialogue. Additionally, the incumbent will provide technical support on rural infrastructure, including development of rural/feeder roads, processing facilities, renewable energy, etc. and ensure compliance with national law and IFAD safeguards. The Specialist will produce concise l technical guidance, provide targeted capacity support and mentoring to project country teams and local partners, and catalyse action research and partnerships that enable scaling of proven approaches. Deliverables include an annual technical workplan, a regional practitioner pack (O&M, inclusion and safeguards templates), documented technical inputs to country designs/supervisions, and an annual pilot synthesis.

1.TECHNICAL ADVICE: On the basis of seasoned technical knowledge and analysis of current thematic conditions, emerging development challenges and the state of rural poverty at the assigned country, regional and global levels, the incumbent provides sound technical advice to improve IFAD's s capacity to address rural poverty, to support national programmes and to enhance IFAD's reputation as a trusted and valued partner.
Accountabilities may include:

• Providing relevant technical expertise in the identification, elaboration and assessment of technical opportunities, proposals and feasibility studies for development projects and programmes and monitoring their execution, in accordance with existing organization guidelines;
• Participating in Project Development Teams (PDTs) and providing technical, analytical inputs to IFAD country strategic opportunity papers (COSOPs), project designs as well as to other policy documents related to rural development and poverty reduction; and
• Participating in project missions as necessary and pilot methods of analysis for IFAD projects Review proposals for small and large grants as required.

2. KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: The incumbent enhances the development of viable and sustainable policy and project development at the country-level and supports regional thematic input through seasoned technical knowledge sharing for the area of specialization. The incumbent will ensure country-level access to the latest sources of knowledge and innovation, strengthen national technical capacity and establish new knowledge and advisory partnerships. Accountabilities may include:

• Sharing knowledge and experiences generated through activities such as analytical studies and regional grants with colleagues in the country programme as well as the division;
• Conducting relevant knowledge development and dissemination with institutions outside of IFAD within the region concerned and national Institutions, disseminating knowledge and lessons learned with peers, counterparts and stakeholders through drafting of Occasional Papers, journal articles, seminars and workshops, through electronic media (e.g. web resource platforms and social media) and the development of new knowledge products and operational tools that are informed by learning from the field; and
• Participating in IFAD-wide thematic discussions and developing appropriate technical and operational approaches of relevance to the country/divisional strategies and programmes.

3. PARTNERSHIP BUILDING AND RESOURCE MOBILIZATION: The incumbent establishes and maintains a network of peer contacts inside and outside IFAD to keep up-to-date on activities at the country and regional levels, to support joint advocacy and for knowledge sharing to enhance the Fund's profile as a highly competent and viable partner in development. Accountabilities may include:

• Building partnerships with complementary technical organizations, NGOs, and specialized departments of other development agencies as potential operational and strategic partners at regional and country levels;
• Strengthening IFAD's representation and communication in technical issues in the relevant thematic area (including representing IFAD at international, regional, inter-agency meetings, seminars and conferences I); and
• Mobilizing new resources for IFAD, in collaboration with the RBMO, through partnerships and outreach activities.

4. MONITORING, EVALUATION AND REPORTING: The incumbent contributes to managing the monitoring, evaluation and reporting of technical activities and components of programs/projects in order to enhance country level programme and funding decisions based on accurate technical data. Accountabilities may include:

• Developing monitoring and evaluation criteria for technical components of programmes and projects;
• Implementing performance monitoring systems and new approaches to performance monitoring; and
• Preparing analytical findings and reports for divisional and country-level decision making on project viability and sustainability.

5. MANAGERIAL FUNCTIONS: The incumbent is accountable for integrity, transparency, and equity in the management of IFAD resources. This includes:

• People Management and evaluation of performance of consultants and staff under their purview.
• Resource Management by providing technical expertise for programme development, and Knowledge and Content Management by ensuring that:
• Knowledge content within specialty/thematic area is continuously updated and available through the intranet
• Best practices are continuously identified, documented and made available to clients and peers through the inter-/intra-net
• Appropriate and up-to-date information and learning tools are available.

Position Specifics:

6.TECHNICAL ADVICE TO COUNTRY PROGRAMMES: The Regional Technical Specialist (Water & Land) provides technical advice to improve the capacity of IFAD to position itself as an influential regional player in the area of Water and Rural Infrastructure and NRM (with focus on water-land resources management). Accountabilities may include:

• Providing Water and Rural Infrastructure and NRM expertise in the identification, elaboration and assessment, in accordance with existing organization guidelines, technical opportunities, proposals and feasibility studies for development investment projects and programmes and supporting and overseeing their execution;
• Providing technical, analytical inputs to IFAD's country strategic opportunity programmes (COSOPs) and Country Strategic Notes (CSNs), project designs as well as to other policy documents related to rural development and poverty reduction.
• Participating in project missions as necessary and pilot methods of analysis for IFAD projects
• Review proposals for small and large grants and sponsor or co-sponsor grants in the areas of water and rural infrastructure and NRM (with focus on Water-Land Nexus management) applications for rural transformation as required
• Preparation of project designs, to ensure that solutions to promote water resilient and climate smart infrastructure along with sustainable land and natural resources practices and innovative approaches are considered and used.
• Organizing and/or contributing to training and/or capacity building activities related to water, NRM and rural infrastructure.
• Promote inclusion of water resilience and climate smart technologies in ongoing projects, promotion of public-private-partnerships and innovative financing and management models in the areas of water, rural infrastructure and NRM.
• Provide upstream technical review and sign-off inputs for water/NRM sections of COSOPs, CSNs and project design documents; draft short technical annexes where gaps exist.
• Through participation as Project Technical Lead (PTL), only on request of the supervisors, and as member of Project Delivery Teams, the incumbent provides state of art highly specialized technical advice in the areas of water and rural infrastructure and NRM to deliver strong project design and development results during implementation and assists in resolving technical challenges. The incumbent acts also as IFAD's leading renewable energy authority in regional and global debates and events, policy fora and policy dialogue, knowledge generation, and partnership building and networking-all related to Water, NRM and Rural Infrastructure (with primary focus on water resources and rural infrastructure).
• Prepare mission briefs and follow-up action notes with timebound responsibilities.
• Ensure integration of water and NRM with Agricultural Producer Group, Farmer Group Investment Facility , and Provincial and Rural Infrastructure Project activities (timing of WUG formation, infrastructure handover, multi-use systems).
• Review engineering outputs at high level (design logic, basic standards, handover readiness) and provide clear handover conditions to local institutions

7. WATER, AND RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, AND NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT: The incumbent supports thematic IFAD's work on the region and performs the above listed activities in the areas of Water and Rural Infrastructure, and NRM (including Water-Land and NRM), with specific emphasis on providing targeted technical advice and support to selected country programmes across the globe; developing knowledge and technical capacities of IFAD's partners; providing technical guidance throughout IFAD's project cycle; Strengthening the technical capacities to deliver quality results and impacts from IFAD's programmes; Supporting country-level water & rural infrastructure policies, institutions and enabling frameworks and in the mainstreaming of climate, nutrition, gender and youth; Strengthening IFAD's participation and visibility in global policy processes and networks relating to sustainable, profitable and climate resilient infrastructure.

Assignments require the provision of seasoned technical expertise and input for the full programme/project cycle as well as in knowledge sharing with peers and counterparts. The work goes beyond technical analysis and synthesis to include substantive inputs to project methodology and design of projects, knowledge sharing among peers and counterparts to enhance cooperation, complementarity and synergy and monitoring and evaluation to measure and report on lessons learned and best practices. The work is considered moderately complex requiring in-depth technical analysis and reporting. Typically operating as a technical specialist at the country or regional levels, the Technical Specialist's work may be reviewed for technical accuracy, but more typically is reviewed for achieving the established work plan.

Position specifics:

The Regional Technical Specialist (Water & Land)'s assignments require the provision of specialized technical expertise and input for programs, projects and initiatives related to Water and Rural Infrastructure as primary focus as well as in relation to natural resources management (with focus on land and natural resources management planning and governance related to water management and infrastructure). The impact of work by the incumbent directly affects country programmes and contributes to regional and corporate policy and strategy. The impact on the overall IFAD country and regional programmes is significant in projecting the Funds role/capacity as a reliable, viable partner in development. The Regional Technical Specialist (Water and Rural Infrastructure and NRM) also selects and provides oversight of external consultants, participates as an expert in field missions and in the servicing of intergovernmental and expert group meetings of a technical nature.

The work relationships of the incumbent at this level are primarily for the exchange of information regarding development projects. Information-gathering and exchange in support of studies and thematic assignments may also include identifying reliable sources and establishing guidelines for obtaining information on national and sub-regional; conditions and to convey methodological approaches and operational experience for implementation of activities undertaken on behalf of the Fund.

Position Specifics:

The Regional Technical Specialist (Water & Land) serves as an expert in Water and Rural Infrastructure and NRM, and works in the provision of technical expertise and methodological guidance at the country as well as regional levels, as required. Contacts are with counterparts and senior officials within other United Nations organizations having related programmes and with officials of governments, non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations, research institutes and academia.
In servicing intergovernmental bodies, expert groups and other meetings, the incumbent provides technical expertise and recommendations for policy formulation and official conclusions in a consultative and specialist capacity; the incumbent may also provide information regarding the organization's policies, and act as IFAD focal point. Contacts are maintained to identify and evaluate emerging developments.

Organizational Competencies:

Level 1:

• Building relationships and partnerships - Builds and maintains effective working relationships
• Communicating and negotiating - Communicates effectively; creates understanding between self and others
• Demonstrating leadership - Personal leadership and attitude to change
• Focusing on clients - Focuses on clients
• Learning, sharing knowledge and innovating - Continuously seeks to learn, shares knowledge & innovates
• Managing performance and developing staff
• Managing time, resources and information - Manages own time, information and resources effectively
• Problem-solving and decision-making - Demonstrates sound problem-solving and decision-making ability
• Strategic thinking and organizational development - Personal influence
• Team working - Contributes effectively to the team

Education:

• Level - Advanced university degree from an accredited institution.
• Area - Engineering, Civil engineering, Water and irrigation, Agriculture, Rural Development, Natural Resource Management, Environment, Economics, or related fields.
• Degree must be an accredited institution listed on https://www.whed.net/home.php .

Experience:

• At least five (5) years of progressively responsible professional experience in, and demonstrated understanding of, development initiatives in the fields of water and rural infrastructure and water and natural resources management, particularly in the formulation of technical guidance and input to agriculture and rural development programmes.
• Two (2) years in a multi-cultural organization or national organization providing support on a global scope.

Position specifics:

• Demonstrated technical experience in in water and rural infrastructure applied to the design and coordination of agriculture and rural development projects and interventions and identification of innovative solutions to emerging issues. In particular in formulating technical guidance to agricultural and rural development programs with a proven experience in the field of water, rural infrastructure and NRM particularly: (i) water resources (and land) management, including specific water governance, planning and investment design at project and catchment scale, water as well as on resilience and climate adaptation planning; (ii) involvement of water users and community based organizations in the design and construction of water-irrigation-drainage systems, (iii) design and construction of water harvesting, storage, water conveyance systems, solar irrigation and irrigation saving techniques, (iv) design and construction of post-harvest and storage facilities, farm tracks, rural roads, market places, etc., taking into account climate-smart design criteria and using renewable energy where appropriate.
• Ability to share technical guidance / knowledge at the governmental and peer levels as well as to inspire more junior specialists and programme staff in the development of viable programme activities.
• Familiarity with application of IFIs safeguards to manage the social, climate and environmental effects of water, land/NRM and rural infrastructure projects and experience in dealing with private sector are strong assets.
• Experience in international policy frameworks related to global environment, natural resource management and rural development is an asset
• Water and Rural Infrastructure, and NRM: Expertise in sustainable water resources management, (including catchment management, water harvesting/storage, nature based solutions, water resilience and climate adaptation); agriculture water management activities such as irrigation/drainage infrastructure and its management; and in rural infrastructure including development of rural building; transport systems and networks and domestic water supply and sanitation.
• Strong technical knowledge of water resources management and irrigation (off-farm and on-farm), watershed/landscape NRM, and multi-use water systems.
• Practical expertise in O&M strategy, institutionalisation of local water governance (WUG/WUA), and design oversight
• Knowledge of climate-smart water/agronomy practices and simple climate risk approaches (drought/flood contingency, seasonal scheduling).
• Familiarity with social & environmental safeguards (SECAP or equivalent), and with gender and social inclusion approaches applied to water/NRM, will be considered as a plus.
• M&E and results-orientation: ability to define practical KPIs for water/NRM and advise on feasible baseline/midline/endline monitoring

Languages:

• Required: English and French (4 - Excellent)
• Desirable: Arabic and/or Spanish (3 - Good)

Skills:

• Advocacy: Ability to leverage IFAD knowledge and/or communication materials to maintain and promote constructive dialogue around IFAD`s vision and strategic priorities to external actors
• Specialized communication skills: Technical know-how relevant to the specific communication role considered (e.g. communication planning, building and maintaining media relations, video production, publishing, web and other digital media, graphic design, visual identity, brand management, internal communication and events management)
• Evidence-based policy: Know-how in the formulation of concrete and actionable policy recommendations based on hard evidence (going beyond simple data interpretation)
• IFAD partners: Knowledge of IFAD's partners' functioning and mandate , such as the public sector (e.g. governments and policy, institutions and system), non-state actors (NGOs, CSOs, Foundations, etc.) and private sector actors
• Risk management (e.g. reputational): Identification and assessment of potential liabilities and risks in IFAD's activities, particularly vis-à-vis third parties; ability to handle risks via contingency and mitigation strategies
• Stakeholder management: Strong alignment capabilities and consultation skills, building on effective interactions and relationships with different stakeholders (e.g. for the co-creation of communication material with member states) and ability to build and maintain a strong network (e.g. with journalists, media outlets, etc.)
• Resources management: Know-how in the management of human, financial and material management of IFAD resources
• Adaptability: Adaptability and flexibility when facing new or unexpected situations, and to specific constraints and circumstances and managing complex processes
• Change management: Role modelling, anticipation of key risks & conflicts and formulation of contingency plans/solutions, action-oriented
• Corporate approach: Ability to bring in corporate vision and priorities into one's area of work (e.g. budgeting going beyond simple budgetary considerations, taking into account strategic priorities)
• Interpersonal skills: Ability to deal patiently and tactfully with others (e.g. visitors, clients, callers, etc.), including senior individuals (e.g. high-level meeting participants)
• Leadership: Group thought leader, sought out by others and providing mentorship and effective guidance to others; Ability to build trust, inside and outside the organization by acting as a role model for IFAD's core values and competencies, and to provide a clear sense of direction, mentorship and effective guidance to the team, strategizing the IFAD's goals, giving the vision, empowering the team and ensuring a positive environment for all.
• Problem solving: Strong systemic and structured thinking, ability to identify and dissect problems into components and formulate a comprehensive set of creative viable and sustainable solutions and strategies
• Synthesis: Outstanding ability to synthesize and simplify complex technical information for a variety of (non-technical) audiences
• Verbal communication: Clear, succinct and convincing verbal communication; highly professional, balanced and diplomatic language
• Written communication: Clear, succinct and convincing written communication in the language needed for specific role; highly professional, balanced and diplomatic language (e.g. for drafting of position papers, briefings, etc.)
• Project/Programme mgmt (incl. coordination, design, development): Know-how in Project design and evaluation
• Water & Rural infrastructure - Expertise in sustainable water resources management, (including catchment management, water harvesting/storage); agriculture water management activities such as irrigation/drainage infrastructure and its management; and in rural infrastructure including development of rural building; transport systems and networks and domestic water supply.

All International Professional staff members are required to be geographically mobile and positions in the professional category are subject to changes in location at any time in line with strategic priorities and reform initiatives in IFAD.

IFAD is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of ethnic, social or political background, colour, nationality, religion, age, gender, disability, marital status, family size or sexual orientation.

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In the interest of making most cost-effective use of funds and resources, we are only able to respond to applicants who are short-listed for interview. Candidates who do not receive any feedback within three months should consider their application unsuccessful.

In accordance with IFAD's provisions, all new staff members will normally be placed at the first step in the grade level for which they have been selected. For information on IFAD's remuneration package, please visit IFAD's compensation and benefits page on our website. Applicants are invited to use the ICSC compensation calculator to estimate the salary and benefit entitlements.