WBG Pioneer - Outcomes intern

Description

WBG Pioneers, the World Bank Group’s Internship Program, offers undergraduate and postgraduate students a high impact learning experience at the heart of global development. Participants gain hands on experience in a diverse and dynamic environment, contribute fresh perspectives and innovative ideas, and connect with international professionals working to end poverty on a livable planet.

WBG Pioneer

Background/Organizational Context

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

Agriculture is an essential pathway to meeting the World Bank Group’s (WBG) twin goals—eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 and promoting shared prosperity. Ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity cannot be achieved without more and better investment in agriculture, food security, and nutrition. Meeting today’s challenges on the food and agriculture agenda will require making major strides in agricultural innovation and climate smart agriculture, increasing job opportunities in rural areas, raising efficiency in food production and distribution systems, promoting environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive production practices, strengthening agricultural policies and institutions, supporting agribusiness value chains, and encouraging collaboration among private and public actors throughout the food system. Agriculture and Agribusiness is an essential pathway to create jobs and achieve the World Bank Group’s target of doubling agri-finance and agribusiness investments to $9 billion annually by 2030 and promoting job security for as many as 200 million farmers worldwide.
Additionally, the World Bank Group’s AgriConnect initiative is a flagship program designed to accelerate the transformation of agri-food systems. AgriConnect aims to create an interconnected ecosystem that unlocks innovation, investment, and sustainable growth across priority value chains, supporting the shift from traditional agriculture to modern agribusiness. AgriConnect also reduces structural constraints and transaction costs faced by rural producers, by improving association and cooperative management, digital technical assistance, and their marketing and sales. In addition, by strengthening cooperatives/associations and value addition (processing, certification/SPG, branding/labels, market channels), it will crowd in private off-takers, service providers, and downstream investment. Brazil is an AgriConnect first-mover country, and collaboration with IFC, MIGA and the private sector in sub-national Project implementation is already underway.

The Latin America and Caribbean Region Unit of the Farming and Agribusiness Department of the WBG (SLCAG) has an active and diversified lending portfolio, which includes investment projects in Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil, Honduras, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Argentina, Uruguay, Jamaica and Haiti, among others, and is one of the largest in the Region.
In Brazil, the SLCAG unit has a multi-year program of support to family farmers with several States and the federal government for 1.1 billion USD, operations in preparation with Financial institutions and ongoing policy dialogue with federal and State entities on repurposing agricultural policies towards a greener, more resilient sector that creates jobs.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. The intern will support the Brazil SCLAG team in the implementation of AgriConnect across the multiple phases of the Brazil AGF Multi Programmatic Approach portfolio. The Brazil MPA Program is structured around 12 phases (12 Projects) and enables a gradual expansion of agrifood public goods and services; directly supports family farmers; transforms agrifood systems; and provides a unique opportunity to inform public policies and programs. It fosters collaboration across federal and state governments to unify Brazil's fragmented agrifood policies into a cohesive national strategy; by (a) developing a shared national vision; (b) creating a tailored menu of investments for different government tiers; and (c) implementing a learning agenda through a robust monitoring, evaluation, and knowledge system, including evaluation of existing agrifood policies to identify challenges and generate knowledge for refining and scaling effective policies. The MPAs will be implemented through a three-pillar strategy: (a) Pillar 1: Provides direct support to family farmers and their organizations, reducing financial barriers to productive investments; (b) Pillar 2: Improves the delivery of last-mile agrifood public goods and services to create better conditions for agrifood system development; and (c) Pillar 3: Creates a feedback loop where governments can shift towards green, resilient, and inclusive agrifood policies.

2. The intern will be based in the Brazil CMU and will interact with the Brazil Agriculture team (3 members based in DC, 3 in Brasilia) and will report to Leonardo Bichara Rocha, Sr Agriculture Economist.

The intern is expected to work with Project Teams in the following tasks:

1. Provide assistance in the formatting and collation of mission reports, aide memoires, implementation status reports, and other documents related to the AgriConnect MPA portfolio;
2. Provide inputs to project documentation, such as PAD, PCN, ICR, ISR, Restructuring Papers, and other regular reports;
3. Actively participate in technical and bilateral meetings with specialists of client project teams to track implementation progress, and provide support to project implementation;
4. Assist the TTL in the  tracking of documentation review submitted to the Bank by the client project teams, including ToR, Editais, Progress Implementation Reports etc;
5. Collect and analyse data related to Project preparation and supervision;
6. Provide meaningful data, information, graphs, images, tables, pictures for analytical documents and presentations on topics relevant to agriculture and rural development in Brazil; and
7. Undertake other tasks as agreed with Task Team Leaders from time to time.

Selection Criteria

• Candidates must be currently enrolled in a postgraduate (master’s/PhD) program

• Academic background must align with the requirements outlined in the job description

• Demonstrated interest in development work and the World Bank Group’s mission

• Strong analytical, research, and problem-solving skills

• Effective written and verbal communication skills

• Ability to work effectively in diverse, team-based environments

• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities within tight deadlines

• Proficiency in English; additional languages may be required depending on the role

• Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree.

• Candidates must have interest in development work and making an impact

• Candidates must be self-driven.

• Possess a sense of urgency, exhibit innovation, and have a strong intellectual curiosity.

• Strong teamwork orientation and good interpersonal skills.

• Positive attitude.

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.

The World Bank Group values diversity and encourages all qualified candidates who are nationals of World Bank Group member countries to apply, regardless of gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.  Sub-Saharan African nationals, Caribbean nationals, and female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.