Do you
want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank
Group provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their
greatest development challenges. The World Bank Group is one of the largest
sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global
partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty,
increasing shared prosperity and promoting sustainable development. With 189
member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and
private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data,
research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global
challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org
Innovation and
partnership bind the five institutions of the World Bank Group (WBG): the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the
International Development Association (IDA), which together form the World
Bank; the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment
Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for 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 to reduce
poverty, increase economic growth, and improve quality of life. To ensure that
countries can access the best global expertise and help generate cutting-edge
knowledge, the World Bank Group is constantly seeking to improve the way it
works. Key priorities include delivering measurable results, promoting openness
and transparency in development, and improving access to development
information and data.
The Legal Vice
Presidency (LEGVP), under the Senior Vice President and Group General Counsel,
is responsible for providing legal support to internal and external World Bank
clients on operational, advisory and corporate matters. LEGVP provides legal
services required by the World Bank and plays an active role in all the World Bank's activities. In addition, LEGVP
helps to ensure that all World Bank activities comply with the institution's
Articles of Agreement, as well as its operational policies and procedures.
Organizationally, LEGVP includes geographically based regional Operational
Practice Groups devoted to the legal and policy aspects of the World Bank's
lending operations, Policy and Advisory Practice Groups which provide advice on
operations policy, environmental and international law, development finance and
structured finance and guarantees and Corporate Practice Groups, which provide
advice on corporate finance, administrative and institutional matters for the
World Bank.
LEGAM provides operational legal support to three regions: (i) Africa
East and Southern (AFE), (ii) Africa West and Central (AFW); and (iii) Middle
East and North Africa (MENA). AFE, AFW and MENA include a mix of low-income,
lower- middle-income, and upper-middle income countries, and several fragile
states. The World Bank work program across Africa is the largest among all the
Regions. The Africa and MENA Regions together represent about 38% of the World
Bank’s net commitments and about 41% of its number of projects in addition to a
robust and complex trust fund portfolio.
LEGAM invites
qualified candidates to apply for its Counsel position.
The Selected candidate will
be expected, at some point during his/her tenure, to move to a decentralized
position in one of the Bank’s Country Offices, as business needs of LEG VPU
might require.
Selected
candidate will work under the general supervision of the LEGAM Chief Counsels,
with day-to-day guidance provided by one or more Lead or Senior Counsels. The
Counsel will be a lawyer who can operate independently to handle legal and
policy issues related to the Bank’s work while working collaboratively with
other lawyers within LEGAM and LEG as a whole.
Roles &
Responsibility:
The Counsel
position requires demonstrated ability of rigorous analytical skills, to work
harmoniously in a team, and to exercise good judgment. The level and quality
of these skills will be a determining factor in the selection for the
position, and references will be given consideration in this determination.
The Counsel
will be expected to handle at least some of the following areas of
responsibility:
- Cover a broad portfolio within
a functional area, providing risk-based advice to clients on legal and
policy issues in one or more areas of concentration.
- Identify, assess and provide advice to management and staff under the legal risk management framework being developed, including rating and reporting of legal risks, and serve as a champion as that framework is developed and fully implemented.
- Participate in, or lead on initiatives or teams, through coordination of portfolios or programs, management of client relationships, participating in dialogue on corporate priorities and other areas relevant to the assigned functional scope.
- Draft, review, negotiate and finalize legal
documents under the Counsel’s portfolio.
- Successfully deliver
legal work on projects, programs, and resource
mobilization and other transactions within client assignments.
- Provide legal support to
ongoing projects and programs, including reviewing project and program
documents for adherence to World Bank Group legal policies and
procedures and business objectives.
- Conduct comparative legal
analyses on a range of issues in a given area, identify legal and policy
issues, research for relevant precedents, and propose appropriate
solutions to colleagues and clients.
- Engage in policy
discussions and negotiations with officials internally and externally,
developing relationships with members of the legal profession and
lawyers working in development partner agencies.
- Protect World Bank
Group's interests and promote its goals and values.
- Write and review policy
papers, undertake legal research on topics in area of concentration and
contribute to dissemination of policy and best practices in a given
field.
- Prepare legal briefs on
diverse topics, as required.
- Work to advance the LEG
VPU’s knowledge management agenda and use of technology; and
- Perform ad hoc
assignments as requested by the manager or designated Lead/Senior
Counsel.