Senior Social Protection Specialist-senior Economist

Duties And Accountabilities

• As a core member of the Social Policy team in Nigeria, the Senior Social Protection Specialist will play a key role in advancing the implementation of the World Bank's current and future operations. The selected candidate will contribute to and lead policy dialogue on and support other operational and ASA tasks that contribute to the Government of Nigeria's social protection and labor agenda. This will, overtime, entail a combination of operational team leadership, technical assistance and analytical activities, contributing with hands-on, international best practice experience in areas relevant to the country's social protection systems. The position will require close coordination with the Government, development partners, and other stakeholders.

Major Responsibilities Would Include

• Leadership / co-leadership of social policy tasks in Nigeria.
• Contribute to and lead aspects of the policy dialogue on Social Policy with key government institutions, including the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, and Project Implementation Units relevant to NASSP-SU, NG-CARES, NFWP-SU, and other operations and others as relevant to technical and policy dialogue.
• Support current and future social policy operational and analytical engagements at the federal and states level in various capacities as team member, co-lead, and lead.
• In coordination with colleagues from Health and Education and working with colleagues from other Verticals and units, support cross-sectoral approaches to promote investments in human capital and social policy in Nigeria.
• Participate and organize missions to provide implementation support, technical inputs and guidance to counterparts, including improving the monitoring and evaluation of project activities. The candidate will also be expected to participate in developing reports and evaluations on World Bank operations as may be relevant.
• Strengthen the World Bank's services to clients and donor partners by supporting donor coordination and liaising with NGOs and Government counterparts.
• Work closely with the World Bank's financial management, procurement, environmental and social teams, and assist the government in matters of project implementation.
• Carry out any other related technical assessments (including the preparation of analytical pieces and/or technical reports on various aspects of ongoing and pipeline Bank projects) and administrative activities as guided and required by the Practice Manager and Country Director.
• Work closely with other relevant stakeholders involved in strengthening the social protection systems including UN Agencies, GIZ, Gates Foundation, etc.
• Keep abreast of and provide technical assistance solutions based on international best practice experience in social protection, particularly with regards to adaptive social protection systems, jobs and economic inclusion, and productive social assistance support to vulnerable households.
• Provide any other type of specialized support and guidance to resolve implementation challenges as needed.

Accountabilities

• The Senior Social Protection Specialist is accountable for performing the responsibilities, modeling the behaviors and maintaining the competencies in his or her capacity as a member of the Social Policy Global Practice. Accountability means being answerable for achieving results, managing quality, risks and institutional initiatives, and operating in compliance with World Bank policies and procedures.

Selection Criteria

• Graduate degree and minimum of a master's level qualification in economics, social policy or related fields.
• Minimum of eight years of directly relevant experience in social protection and labour, and other relevant sectors. Experience and substantive skills in social assistance operations, particularly as they can be applied to adaptive and shock responsive social protection systems.
• Experience working in large-scale development operations (lending and/or analytical).
• Experience working with World Bank operations would be an added advantage.
• Proven technical, analytical, and operational skills and experience.
• Experience in leading analytical and technical assistance activities designed to support the development and strengthening of government systems.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and maintain productive, professional relationships with government counterparts, donors, civil society, academia, and other stakeholders
• Ability to maintain client relationships in the face of conflicting demands or directions.
• High capacity for organization and coordination, as well as an ability to work with a high degree of independence in a team environment.
• Experience in managing diverse and sometimes competing interests and perspectives to arrive at a durable consensus.
• Knowledge of WB financing instruments and operational policies and procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to provide evidence-based advice and solutions based on sound diagnosis and knowledge.
• Ability to advise, influence and promote consensus among different stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead teams. Excellent interpersonal skills, with proven ability to work in a team and intercultural environment, with minimal supervision.
• Proven track record of multi-tasking, managing competing demands and effectively time-manage tasks.
• Proven ability to identify and develop new and creative partnerships with diverse agencies and organizations.
• Ability to work in a collaborative way, delivering cross-support and building relationships around a common goal.
• Evidence of strong interpersonal skills, and solid professional integrity and judgement.
• Evidence of sharing and conveying complex technical issues, in accessible format - written, spoken.
• Native or near-native proficiency in written English.
• Willing to travel to remote areas in Nigeria and field experience in developing countries a plus

Required Competencies

Experience

• Graduate degree and minimum of master's level qualification in economics, social policy or related sector
• Minimum of eight years of relevant experience in social protection and other related sectors.
• Strong operational experience in social protection and large-scale government led safety nets
• Experience working with clients to build capacity and engage in dialogue on social protection and service delivery, particularly on safety nets and women's empowerment
• Excellent World Bank operational skills in implementing world bank supported programs.

Technical Ability

• Technical knowledge and skills in key areas of social protection programming including social safety nets, economic inclusion, women's empowerment, etc.
• Technical knowledge in social protection delivery systems including social registries, payment systems, biometric identification systems, and others.
• Experience in leading technical assistance activities designed to support the development and strengthening of social protection programs.
• Analytical experience in leveraging data to develop policy advisory that is useful for government.
• Demonstrated ability in developing advisory material, analytical papers and policy notes.

Client Orientation

• Ability to maintain client relationships in the face of conflicting demands and provides evidence-based advice and solutions based on sound diagnosis and knowledge
• Ability to advise, influence and promote consensus among different stakeholders, particularly other donors and UN agencies

Teamwork

• Demonstrated ability to lead a task team of Bank staff and/or consultants.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with proven ability to lead a team and work in an intercultural environment, with minimal supervision
• Proven track record of multi-tasking, managing competing demands and effectively time-manage tasks

Communication

• Evidence of strong interpersonal skills, judgement
• Evidence of sharing and conveying complex technical issues, in accessible format; written and spoken.
• Proficiency in English

As the World Bank Group continues to evolve, we value candidates who:

• Demonstrate the ability to collaborate effectively across teams, disciplines, cultures, and institutional boundaries.
• Responsibly leverage digital and AI-enabled tools to enhance productivity, learning, and decision-making.
• Bring experience working in fragile, conflict-affected, and violent (FCV) contexts and are encouraged to highlight relevant experience in their application materials, where applicable.

WBG Culture Attributes

• Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
• Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
• Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.