Infrastructure Specialist

Infrastructure Specialist Job #: req32498 Organization: World Bank Sector: Transportation Grade: GF Term Duration: 3 years 0 months Recruitment Type: Local Recruitment Location: Tirana,Albania Required Language(s): English Preferred Language(s): Albanian Closing Date: 4/11/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

 Description

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 Region & Country Context: 
The Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region comprises 30 extremely diverse, predominantly middle-income countries, with a population of nearly 500 million people. ECA countries face structural and legacy issues, including an incomplete transition to a market economy and declining productivity, weak institutional capacity, dependence on fossil fuels, limited physical and digital connectivity and, in many instances, aging populations. Recent shocks (COVID-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, weather shocks and natural disaster) have further exacerbated these challenges, with significant impacts on the level, inclusiveness and sustainability of growth and overall living standards.   The World Bank Group is working closely with client countries in the region to address these issues, with increasing focus on productivity growth and job creation, energy security and water management, human capital and economic inclusion, and physical and digital connectivity. The region has a strong lending pipeline and a large portfolio of projects spanning a number of sectors. In addition, knowledge is critical to the Bank’s value proposition to client countries in the ECA region. 
For more information, visit https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/eca
Albania Country Program
The ongoing WBG program in Albania is being implemented under the Country Partnership Framework (2023 – 2027) endorsed by the Bank in March 2023. Through this framework, the WBG program will support rapid recovery and transformation towards a more robust, equitable, resilient, and greener economy, and healthier and more productive lives for the Albanian people. The focus areas include the creation of more jobs by helping the country to unleash the competitiveness and productivity of the private sector; the improvement of human capital through engagement on health, education and social protection; and enhancing Albania’s resilience to shocks by strengthening macro-fiscal buffers, reducing vulnerability to climate change in key sectors and improving the resilience of infrastructure. Additionally, there are two cross-cutting themes: digitalization and inclusion. For more information, visit https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/albania
Practice Group Context: 
The Infrastructure Practice Group  Globally, 840 million people live more than 2 kilometers from all-weather roads, 1 billion people lack electricity, and 4 billion lack Internet access. Access to basic infrastructure and services is critical for creating economic opportunities for the poor and a more livable planet. The Infrastructure Practice Group is charged with developing sustainable solutions to help close infrastructure gaps in developing and emerging economies.  For more information: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/infrastructure
Duties and Responsibilities
The IECTR unit seeks to recruit a seasoned Infrastructure Specialist to join the ECA Infrastructure Practice Group in the World Bank office in Tirana, Albania. The Infrastructure Practice Group includes Transport, Energy & Extractives, and Urban, Resilience and Land (URL) practices, and works in close collaboration with Digital Development, and Infrastructure Finance, Public Private Partnerships and Guarantees.  There is also an increasing emphasis to work closely with IFC and MIGA to deliver integrated solutions to clients.    
The Infrastructure Specialist will provide support for strategic transport/energy/URL projects and analytical studies in Albania and select Western Balkans countries focusing on green, resilient and sustainable infrastructure, while also promoting private sector participation.
Main responsibilities will include working closely with the Infrastructure Practice Managers and the Bank teams to support clients in Albania and the Western Balkans, in the following areas: 
• Co-lead and/or support task teams in the identification, preparation and implementation of Infrastructure projects in Albania and select Western Balkans countries. • Lead analytical studies or Trust Funds on issues related to the provision of infrastructure and services.• Participate in the policy dialogue under the mentorship of the Practice Managers for Transport, Energy and URL, with external development partners in the country and Western Balkans.• Provide technical expertise during the implementation of ongoing projects, including measuring performance and advising the clients on how to improve activities related to contract management, planning, designing, constructing, and maintaining assets.• Contribute to cross-sectoral teams responsible for preparation of core world bank strategic instruments, policy notes, Country Partnership Frameworks, public expenditures reviews, sectoral studies, and research and policy development activities on the topics/sections pertaining to transport/energy/URL.  • Carry out frequent inspections of project sites and dialogue with national and local authorities implementing the Bank’s lending portfolio and other engagements. • Interact with colleagues on cross-sectoral products and exchange knowledge with coworkers and clients.• Provide policy advice on reforms and support the development of new activities for the World Bank Group.• Staying abreast of recent developments in the relevant sectors in Albania, Western Balkans and world-wide, and on cross-cutting issues, in relation to the topics of specialization for this position; identifying knowledge gaps and disseminating relevant knowledge to clients. 
You will actively participate in the relevant Country Management Unit (CMU) discussions, particularly on the preparation of Systematic Country Diagnostics (SCD) and Country Partnership Frameworks (CPFs), as well as on portfolio reviews. 

Selection Criteria

Minimum Qualification
• Master's degree in infrastructure engineering, infrastructure planning/economics, or other relevant fields for infrastructure development. • Minimum of five years of professional work experience in the infrastructure sector,  transport sector preferably, with working experience in one additional infrastructure sector. • Proven track record of design and implementation of infrastructure projects, preferably with solid understanding of both infrastructure and services. • Solid understanding of the procurement of works, goods, and services.• Strong project management and organizational skills, ability to prioritize tasks and ensure timely completion of tasks under pressure. • Experience working with or leading cross-sectoral teams and demonstrated synergetic skills, including coaching, mentoring, motivating junior colleagues, and resolving challenges.• Experience of working on programs financed by the World Bank or other development partners, multilateral or bilateral would be desirable.• Proven ability to build client relationships involving multiple partners, to discuss transformative infrastructure policies or reforms.• Excellent written and oral English proficiency is a pre-requisite.  Fluency in Albanian is essential.   In addition, it would be desirable for the candidate to have: • Experience team-leading dialogues in programs financed by development partners which required multiple stakeholder engagement.• Knowledge of the infrastructure sector and network of relevant contacts in Albania and the Western Balkans.  • Familiarity with the EU accession process of Albania and the other Western Balkans countries• Previous experience working on State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) reforms, financial sustainability, governance, and institutional strengthening in the infrastructure sectors.• Understanding of decarbonization and resilience priorities, infrastructure policies, technologies or strategies, and private sector participation. 
Technical Competency Requirement 
• Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena - Understands policy making process; distills operationally relevant recommendations/lessons for clients.• Policy Dialogue Skills - Identifies and assesses policy issues and plays an active role in the dialogue with the government and/or other stakeholders. • Infrastructure Policy, Strategy, and Institutions – Deep experience with policies, strategies, institutions, and regulations in at least one key infrastructure sector (transport/energy/urban or disaster risk management). • Client Orientation - Takes personal responsibility and accountability for timely response to client queries, requests or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success. • Drive for Results - Takes personal ownership and accountability to meet deadlines and achieve agreed-upon results and has the personal organization to do so. • Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion - Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team's work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view. • Knowledge, Learning and Communication - Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner. • Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Analyzes facts and data to support sound, logical decisions regarding own and others' work.
WBG COMPETENCIES
• Lead and Innovate - Develops innovative solutions.• Deliver Results for Clients - Proactively addresses clients’ stated and unstated needs.• Collaborate Within Teams and Across Boundaries - Collaborates across boundaries, gives own perspective, and willingly receives diverse perspectives.