E T Consutant

E T Consutant

Description

At the World Bank, a member of the World Bank Group (WBG), you’ll join a diverse, global community working across cultures, disciplines, and borders to address the world’s most pressing development challenges. With 1.2 billion young people reaching working age in the decade ahead, the challenge of job creation has never been greater. Through partnerships across 145 countries and more than 182 offices worldwide, we work with governments, private sector, development partners and other stakeholders to invest in people, strengthen markets, and deliver scalable, data-driven solutions that generate more and better jobs and improve lives. For more information, visit https://www.worldbank.org/en/who-we-are/ibrd

The Governance Global Practice (GGP) brings together professionals in procurement, financial management, taxation, regulatory policy, transparency, digital governance, law and development, anticorruption, and social accountability to develop innovative, integrated solutions to pernicious institutional problems. The GGP utilizes a problem-driven diagnostic approach, combining global comparative knowledge of reform successes and failures with keen understanding of the institutional challenges and opportunities of developing countries. The GGP engages on core and cross cutting themes including Public Financial Management; Subnational/decentralization; State Owned Enterprises/Corporate Governance; Fiduciary Assurance; Public Institutions; GOVTECH, Anticorruption, Open Government and Political Economy.

Fiduciary Systems, Solutions and Impact Global Unit (WKPGF)

The WKPGF Global Unit within the World Bank’s Governance Global Practice supports client countries in strengthening public financial management (PFM) institutions, systems, and capabilities to improve efficiency, transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of public spending. The team leads global work on public financial management (PFM), including sectoral and Climate PFM, public procurement, standards and codes for transparent financial management in the public sector, corporate governance and state-owned enterprises (SOEs), the PEFA Secretariat, and multilevel and subnational governance.

Digital technologies are increasingly central to modern PFM systems. Ministries of Finance are seeking to modernize Integrated Financial Management Information Systems (IFMIS), improve interoperability across core government systems, strengthen the quality and use of fiscal data, automate financial processes, and leverage emerging technologies to improve fiscal management and decision-making.

The rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning, and advanced data analytics also creates new opportunities for Ministries of Finance, including forecasting, expenditure analysis, anomaly detection, automation, fiscal risk monitoring, and improved decision support, while requiring appropriate governance, data quality, security, and institutional safeguards.

To strengthen its capacity in this area, the World Bank seeks to recruit an Extended-Term Consultant (ETC) specializing in Digital PFM, IFMIS, information technology, data, and the application of AI to public financial management. The ETC will support the Digital PFM workstream of the Global PFM Program, which is structured around nine interconnected workstreams: Budgeting; Treasury and Cash Management; Fiscal Risks; Fiscal Transparency; Audit and Oversight; Accounting and Reporting; Public Investments and Assets; Digital PFM; and Procurement. 

The ETC will contribute to the development of global knowledge, tools, and scalable solutions on IFMIS modernization, digital transformation, data, and emerging technologies, while working with regional and country teams to translate these approaches into practical support for Ministries of Finance and other central finance institutions. The position requires strong technical expertise combined with a sound understanding of government PFM processes; prior experience within a Ministry of Finance, Treasury, Budget Directorate, or other central finance agency would be a significant advantage.
Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) Program

The PEFA program aims to strengthen public financial management and accountability systems and improve knowledge of the quality and scope for improving public financial management performance. The program seeks to achieve this objective through the application of PEFA assessment methodology, performance reports, research, analysis, and application of PEFA results, and complementarity with other public sector analyses. The PEFA methodology has been used about 800 times in 155 countries and around 67 % of all PEFA Assessments are regularly published on PEFA Website.

The PEFA program operates through a World Bank administered multi-donor trust fund. It is directed by a Steering Committee comprising eight partner organizations: the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the European Commission, French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development Agency (AFD), Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, The Ministry of Finance of The Slovak Republic and The Ministry of Finance of the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg. The PEFA Secretariat supports the Steering Committee in the monitoring, maintenance, and development of the program. It also supports users of the PEFA methodology through advice, guidance, training, research, and information.

The PEFA program has been in operation since 2001. The fifth phase of the program commenced in April 2017 and finished at the end of 2023. It has been extended into subsequent phases to the sixth phase.

The ETC will work under the leadership of Head of PEFA Secretariat and report to the WKPGF Practice manager.

Objective of the Assignment

The ETC will support the design and implementation of World Bank analytical, advisory, and operational activities related to Digital PFM, IFMIS modernization, data, and emerging technologies.

The specialist will:

• Help bridge PFM functional requirements and digital/IT solutions, ensuring that technology investments respond to institutional and business-process needs rather than being approached primarily as IT projects.
• Work with World Bank teams and government counterparts to assess existing systems, identify digital transformation priorities, design modernization approaches, and support implementation of digital PFM reforms.
• Support teams and government counterparts in identifying practical and responsible applications of AI and advanced analytics to PFM, assessing their feasibility, data requirements, institutional readiness, risks, and potential value added.
  
  Duties and Responsibilities
  
  Digital PFM and IFMIS
• Provide technical and functional advice on the design, modernization, implementation, and evaluation of IFMIS/FMIS and related PFM information systems.
• Assess existing digital PFM architectures, including system functionality, coverage, interoperability, data flows, institutional arrangements, and implementation constraints.
• Support the development of IFMIS modernization strategies and roadmaps, including migration from legacy systems and options for modular, interoperable, and potentially cloud-based architectures.
• Advice on functional requirements covering key PFM processes, including budget preparation, budget execution, commitment controls, treasury and cash management, accounting, financial reporting, payments, procurement, public investment, asset management, and fiscal reporting.
• Support integration and interoperability between IFMIS and related systems, including e-procurement, tax and customs systems, debt management systems, payroll/HRMIS, public investment management systems, central bank/payment systems, and data platforms.
• Assess how IFMIS and other government financial systems can provide the data architecture and interoperability required to support AI-enabled applications, while ensuring data quality, security, auditability, and appropriate controls.
  
  PFM and Business Process Reform
• Analyze PFM institutional arrangements and business processes and identify opportunities for simplification, standardization, automation, and digitalization.
• Ensure that proposed digital solutions are grounded in PFM legislation, institutional responsibilities, controls, accounting frameworks, and government business processes.
• Support business-process mapping and reengineering prior to or alongside digital investments.
• Translate PFM policy and operational requirements into functional and technical requirements for digital systems.
• Identify PFM processes where AI-assisted tools and intelligent automation could generate measurable improvements in efficiency, controls, analytical capacity, or decision-making, while avoiding the digitalization of inefficient or poorly designed processes.
  
  Digital Transformation, Data and Emerging Technologies

• Advice on digital architecture, interoperability, data standards, master data management, data governance, and system integration relevant to PFM.
• Support initiatives to improve the accessibility, quality, integration, and use of fiscal and financial data.
• Explore appropriate applications of data analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, automation, and other emerging technologies in PFM while considering institutional capacity, sustainability, information security, and implementation risks.
• Contribute to approaches for dashboards, fiscal analytics, anomaly detection, forecasting, expenditure monitoring, and decision-support tools where appropriate.
• Advice on cybersecurity, business continuity, disaster recovery, access controls, audit trails, and other IT governance considerations relevant to financial management systems.
• Support the development and testing of practical AI use cases for PFM, potentially including revenue and cash forecasting, expenditure analysis, spending reviews, detection of unusual transactions, procurement analytics, fiscal risk analysis, document analysis, and automated reporting.
  
  World Bank Operations and Country Support
  
• Provide technical inputs to World Bank lending operations, analytical work, technical assistance, diagnostics, and implementation support involving digital PFM and IFMIS.
• Participate in missions and engage directly with Ministries of Finance, Treasuries, Budget Offices, Accountant General Offices, digital government agencies, and other relevant institutions.
• Review technical specifications, functional requirements, procurement documentation, system design documents, implementation plans, and vendor deliverables.
• Help teams assess the feasibility, sequencing, costs, institutional requirements, and implementation risks associated with digital PFM investments.
• Contribute to quality assurance and peer review of World Bank activities involving IFMIS and Digital PFM.
• Develop practical guidance, tools, case studies, and knowledge products and contribute to learning and knowledge-sharing activities across regions.
• Advise World Bank teams and government counterparts on the responsible introduction of AI into PFM operations, including questions of data readiness, governance, human oversight, explainability, cybersecurity, sustainability, and implementation capacity.

Selection Criteria

The successful candidate should have:

• Master’s/PhD’s degree or equivalent in information systems, computer science, information technology, public financial management, public administration, economics, engineering, data science, or another relevant discipline.
• At least 5–8 years of relevant professional experience in digital government, PFM information systems, IFMIS/FMIS, or related fields.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience with the design, implementation, modernization, or assessment of IFMIS/FMIS.
• Strong understanding of core PFM institutions and processes, including budget preparation and execution, treasury and cash management, accounting, financial reporting, internal controls, and preferably procurement.
• Ability to understand both the functional/PFM and technical/IT dimensions of government financial management systems.
• Experience with system architecture, interoperability, databases, APIs, data management, enterprise architecture, or related digital-government concepts.
• Experience working with governments and communicating technical issues to senior officials and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated knowledge of AI, machine learning, advanced analytics, or intelligent automation and an ability to assess their practical application to government and PFM processes.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and drafting skills.
• Excellent written and spoken English. Additional languages would be an advantage.
  
  Highly Desirable Experience
  
  Preference will be given to candidates with one or more of the following:
• Previous professional experience in a Ministry of Finance, Treasury, Budget Directorate, or equivalent central finance institution.
• Direct responsibility for managing or implementing an IFMIS/FMIS reform or modernization program from the government side.
• Experience translating PFM requirements into functional specifications and working with IT teams and system vendors.
• Experience in developing or emerging economies and familiarity with the institutional and capacity constraints affecting digital PFM reforms.
• Experience with World Bank or other international financial institution operations and government digital transformation programs.
• Knowledge of public-sector IT procurement and contract management.
• Hands-on experience developing, piloting, deploying, or evaluating AI or machine-learning applications in government, finance, PFM, procurement, audit, or related public-sector functions.
  
  Expected Outputs
  
  Specific outputs will be agreed through the annual work program and may include IFMIS assessments and modernization roadmaps; Digital PFM diagnostics; functional and technical reviews; inputs to World Bank operations; business-process and systems architecture analyses; implementation support to country teams; technical specifications and procurement reviews; and Digital PFM guidance, tools, and knowledge products.
  
  Develop or contribute to practical AI/advanced analytics use cases, prototypes, methodological guidance, readiness assessments, and implementation roadmaps that can be tested and potentially scaled across World Bank country engagements.
  
  The ETC will work across multiple countries and global engagements and will be expected to contribute actively to the World Bank’s broader agenda on modernizing PFM systems and leveraging digital technologies, data, and AI to improve public spending and fiscal management.
  
  Key Competencies
  
  The position requires a profile capable of bridging PFM practitioners, government decision-makers, IT specialists, and data/AI experts. The successful candidate should demonstrate:
• An Advanced degree in computer science, engineering, economics or a relevant discipline, with at least 8 years of relevant work experience in the design and implementation of digital solutions including interoperability frameworks and shared data exchange platforms (e.g., service bus, APIs);
• Experience of using third party and open-source information;
• Strong understanding of how Ministries of Finance operate;
• Comprehensive understanding of public finance policies, strategies, institutions, governance, and regulations;
• Ability to connect technology choices to PFM reform objectives;
• Capacity to distinguish between institutional/business-process problems and technology problems;
• Ability to communicate complex IT concepts to PFM specialists and policy makers, and PFM requirements to technical teams;
• Knowledge of machine learning methods and AI-driven analytics;
• Proficiency in Python, R, or SQL for data manipulation and analysis;
• Experience with CUDA for GPU-accelerated data processing and machine learning applications;
• Pragmatic and solution-oriented approach to digital transformation;
• Ability to translate AI opportunities into realistic PFM use cases and explain both their potential and limitations to non-technical government counterparts;
• Ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams;
• Strong client orientation and ability to build trusted relationships with government counterparts.
• Ability to deal effectively and diplomatically with member country authorities; and
• Strong interpersonal, communications and writing skills, and excellent written and oral communication skills in English.

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.

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