Senior Water Specialist, Governance and Regulation

World Bank Group•Washington, DC

9d•Onsite

About The Position

The World Bank Group (WBG) Planet Vice Presidency is spearheading efforts to ensure a livable planet, recognizing its necessity for job creation and poverty alleviation. This VPU is responsible for delivering effective public and private sector solutions to operational teams and clients, aiming for scalable impact. Its mandate includes providing guidance on job creation, focusing on sectors like agribusiness, tourism, infrastructure (water), and health (sanitation, nutrition). It also supports foundational infrastructure, human capital, policy environments, private sector mobilization, and accelerates specific targets and commitments such as Mission AgriConnect, Mission Water, and the Climate Change Action Plan. The VPU's objectives are to replicate and scale successful solutions, enhance thought leadership and innovation, and deliver timely knowledge to client teams. The WBG Water Department, under the theme 'Water for People, Food, and Planet,' implements the World Bank Group’s Water Strategy Implementation Plan (WSIP). Water security is viewed as a cornerstone of resilient and prosperous societies, underpinning growth, human development, jobs, and livelihoods through sustained water resources, reliable services, and risk management. The WSIP aims to improve water security for 400 million people by 2030, organized around three pillars: Water for People, Water for Food, and Water for Planet. Delivery is facilitated by scalable solutions, knowledge for impact, and programmatic approaches and partnerships. The WBG Water Department collaborates with regions to implement the WSIP, offering tailored solutions for various client segments, including governments, private sector operators, investors, and financial institutions. Implementation involves country-led Water Compacts, coordinated public and private interventions for capital investment mobilization, and multiphase programmatic approaches for scaling successful interventions. Collaboration with partners like MDBs and philanthropies is also expanding through Mission Water to accelerate global water security. This agenda is supported by the World Bank Group's evolution into an integrated Knowledge Bank, bridging the gap between insight and implementation. Within the Water sector, the Knowledge Bank delivery model comprises two global units: The Policy and Regulations Unit, which provides global thought leadership and evidence-based policy support for water security, focusing on governance, institutions, and regulations (PIR), and supports an enabling environment for private finance. It also drives innovation, knowledge management, research, and water data analytics for policymaking, ensuring high standards for inclusion, climate resilience, and dam safety. The Solutions and Impact Unit scales and replicates high-impact water projects and innovations across WBG operations, supports WSIP implementation, and provides operational support and portfolio oversight. It drives impact through monitoring and evaluation, knowledge sharing, and applied research, adapting global solutions to local contexts. These units operate within the WBG Water Department's leadership structure, alongside Global Leads for the WSIP outcome pillars and cross-cutting areas like Financing, Governance and Regulation, and Water for Prosperity. This structure enables a governance and regulation-anchored delivery approach that strengthens institutions, improves accountability, and creates conditions for investment and sustainable service delivery. The WBG Water Department has 65 staff members.

Requirements

A Master’s degree (Ph.D. preferred) in a relevant field including education, economic development or related social sciences field, with at least 8 years of relevant experience in positions of increasing complexity and responsibility.
Proven and deep expertise on water sector regulatory issues, with hands-on experience working with or for water sector regulator(s).
Demonstrated track record developing and providing hands-on advice related to policies, institutions and regulations in the water sector.
Extensive development experience providing policy advice in WBG client countries.
Operational experience, ideally through extensive work with a multilateral development bank (MDB) or an international financial institution (IFI).
Demonstrated experience working on private sector participation in the water sector.
Demonstrated leadership and people management skills, including experience managing multi-location and virtual teams, and operating effectively with both formal and matrixed authority.
Strong strategic orientation and ability to prioritize, streamline, and rationalize activities to maximize impact.
Adaptability, flexibility, and ability to lead teams for success during periods of change.
Extensive experience working across practices, disciplines, and sectors, and in building partnerships with governments, the private sector, civil society, donors, and research institutions to achieve development results.
Knowledge and experience in one or more relevant thematic areas is desirable, though strong managerial, coordination, and influencing skills are paramount.
Excellent communication and representational skills, including proven experience engaging with senior stakeholders, media, and external constituencies.

Responsibilities

Provide just-in-time strategic and hands-on advice and guidance on water sector regulatory issues, based on global lessons learned and fit-for-purpose solutions for the respective country/client context, following-through on support to help lead to tangible results for WBG operations.
Provide just-in-time strategic and hands-on advice and guidance on appropriate policy and institutional issues, based on global lessons learned and fit-for-purpose solutions for the respective country/client context, following-through on support to help lead to tangible results for WBG operations.
Lead and/or contribute to sharp and concise operations-oriented research and analysis to bring the latest knowledge and innovation to our support to clients, collaborating with others, both inside and outside the Water Global Department, to ensure full synergies.
Lead and/or contribute to papers on PIR for water, blogs and other communication materials, and contribute to global flagship reports, curate lessons learned and case studies, participating in select conferences and events as agreed with management, and the like.
Participate in relevant corporate initiatives and undertake relevant corporate reviews to ensure WBG Global Water contributions reflect the latest and context-appropriate thinking that consider PIR in the water sector.
Provide briefings to senior management on complex PIR on an as-needed basis.
Be an active participant of the Water Global Department’s Leadership Team and specifically the P&R Unit’s Leadership Team.
Work with management to develop a core team of PIR experts to provide hands-on support to task teams on PIR, within existing budgetary and other parameters.
Participate in all relevant activities sponsored by the Global Water Security and Sanitation Partnership to support and inform WBG Water Global partners.
Other related tasks.