Background / General description:Assignment summary: With financial contributions from six donors (EU, Norway, DFID, Irish Aid, FICA and USAID), the World Bank has established a Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) to co-finance the Agricultural Sector Wide Approach - Support project (ASWAp-SP) implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MoAFS). The proposed operation officer position will be part of the World Bank team based in the Malawi Country Office in charge of supervising the execution of the MDTF and of advising the MoAFS in implementing ASWAp-SP activities.
Background: The Development Objective of the ASWAp-SP is to improve the effectiveness of investments aimed at food security and sustainable agricultural growth. The project has the following four components: (1) Institutional development and capacity building in support of the ASWAp; (2) Sustainable food security, agricultural growth and diversification; (3) Project coordination; and (4) Improvement and maintenance of unpaved rural roads.
The objective of the MDTF is to scale up on-going activities with particular attention to: (a) Strengthening MoAFS administrative systems, particularly at the district level with a stronger focus on monitoring and evaluation systems; and strengthening MoAFS's capacity to implement the ASWAp; (b) Enhancing the organization and delivery of inputs under FISP, monitoring and evaluation, with a stronger focus on maize and legumes seeds availability; (c) Increasing the nationwide coverage of research and extension activities to reach out to more farmers and to increase FISP payoffs and sustainable impact on smallholders; and (d) Improving the efficiency of agricultural research and extension services while promoting a more pluralistic approach to delivering these services.
In addition, the MDTF will help develop the following additional activities: (a) Diversification of the maize-based production systems by:
(i) extending the current research and extension approach to increase the adoption rate of selected technologies, diversified crops (cereals, roots and tubers, pulses and leguminous, agro-forestry products, etc.) and livestock production by farmers; and
(ii) improving crop production and marketing, and ensuring availability of sufficient certified seeds to meet increasing demand both within and outside of FISP; (b) Improve the agricultural business environment and promote agribusiness partnerships in support of agricultural diversification with a more market oriented and demand-driven agriculture and integration into agricultural value chains and regional markets; and (c) Improve market access to the most productive agricultural areas through the improvement and sustainable maintenance of feeder roads.
Duties and Accountabilities: Description of duties: The main objective of this assignment is to provide assistance to the Bank supervision team in administrating and managing the ASWAp-SP MDTF, in supervising the execution of the BETF and the implementation of the RETF, ensuring overall compliance with the project's legal agreements and technical documentation and ensuring coordination with the overall Malawi portfolio. Duties will include but may not be limited to:
1-MDTF Administration and management:
a)Ensure proper administration and management of the BETF and RETF; Ensure compliance with overall corporate and regional policies and TF / operational procedures.
b)Keep project's information up-to-date in the Bank's operation system;
c)Assist task team in using MDTF resources available for TF administration / management and for supervision; assist task team in monitoring and recording utilization;
d)Prepare and regularly update dashboards for proper administration and management of the different components of the MDTF (Administration/Management, BETF and RETF).
e)Assist task team in preparing and processing Grant Funding Requests, call for funds and annual disbursements.
f)Contribute to the preparation of project-related documentation such as project amendments and terms of reference for consultancies.
2-BETF / RETF reporting requirement:
a)Work with the MoAFS to ensure that the progress reports are delivered timely and comprehensively reflect the physical and financial progress of works and identify issues that require attention by project stakeholders;
b)Prepare inputs for the Bank's six-monthly reports to donors on MTDF activities;
3-Client and MDTF Donor information:
a)Contribute to the preparation of project briefings and other relevant monitoring information to inform clients, Bank management and donors in an organized manner and in compliance with the Bank's quality guidelines.
b)Help organize meetings of the Trust Fund Management Committee, prepare documentation for donors' review and assist drafting of minutes;
4-RETF implementation:
a)Assist task team in supervising the RETF execution, in analysing requests for no objection, in organizing supervision missions and in preparing aide-memoires;
b)Review Project's annual work plans and budgets, cash-flow forecasts, disbursement requests, reports and submissions for the project;
c)Provide technical inputs on the review of procurement processes covering procurement plans, requests for '˜no objections', procurement post reviews, requests for variations to contracts and contract implementation;
d)Help organize and participate in supervision missions and carry out site visits, monitor the quality of execution of the works to verify compliance with specifications and good practice;
5-Portfolio coordination and management
a)Ensure coordination of BETF execution and RETF implementation with the overall Malawi portfolio.
b)Assist the Country Office in overall coordination efforts, including harmonization and alignment with other donors; Ensure compliance with overall corporate and regional policies and procedures.
c)Provide all relevant information for portfolio monitoring and contribute to portfolio coordination and quality assurance.
d)Assist the CO in overall management of the country program, including preparation of annual work-program and budget and troubleshooting with client on operational issues. Support the CO in identifying and addressing cross-cutting and country generic portfolio issues.
Accountabilities: The operation officer will be part of the World Bank supervision team based in the Malawi Country Office. He/she will directly report to the World Bank Task Team Leader for ASWAp-SP. He/she will liaise with colleagues in the Bank's agricultural and transport sectors for additional technical support as necessary, and support the Country Manager in overall portfolio coordination and management.
Selection Criteria: Selection Criteria: The position requires:
(i) a strong hands-on experience of project administration and management, monitoring and reporting, portfolio management, procedures and system, elaboration of dashboards and monitoring tools;
(ii) proactivity in collecting and compiling information, searching and checking procedures and policies; and
(iii) a sound experience in team work, strong communication and donor coordination skills.
Specific criteria will include:
Required Competencies
