Planning support for the 2014 Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty

The land tenure team in the Agriculture and Rural Development Group in the World Bank’s Research Department leads Bank research on land tenure and governance (including large scale acquisition of land) as well as the impact evaluation of scalable land interventions. In an environment where the importance of land issues is increasingly recognized at global level (including the G8 and the discussion on MDGs post-2015, and private sector debates on responsible land-based investment), the Bank’s Annual Conference on Land and Poverty (click herefor the 2013 website that includes links to earlier years) has become an important venue.

By bringing together representatives from key partners in government, the development community, civil society, academia, and the private sector, has emerged an important avenue to identify new challenges, disseminate innovative approaches and best practice, and strengthen collaboration and networking between partners in this field. The 2013 event featured 750 participants and more than 200 presentations, from academia, governments, civil society, and the private sector.

The 2014 conference is scheduled for March 31 – April 4, 2014 in the World Bank’s Main Complex (1818 H Street NW) in Washington, DC. The event is organized around several themes, and presentations are organized into six parallel “tracks” according to theme. In addition, the conference typically includes a Pre-Conference Workshop on land governance and several side events hosted both within and outside the World Bank Main Complex, as well as sponsor booths hosted in the Main Atrium for the duration of the conference.

To fully utilize the potential of this event to shape the global agenda, the services of a consultant are needed. Key responsibilities will be in two areas:
·         Oversee the thematic planning for the conference by taking responsibility for convening and managing an organizing committee to help decide on thematic priorities, identify key invited sessions and keynote speakers, and agree on innovative and interactive ways to engage participants.
·         Take responsibility and manage all aspects of event preparation and implementation, including sponsorships, program, registration, website, and travel.

The position offers an exciting opportunity for a dynamic and committed individual to be part of  a rapidly emerging global agenda that can serve as a foundation for a career in operations or analytical activities in the land sector. Applicants must be fluent in English, be able to professionally communicate with high-level development partner and government representatives, and excel in a fast-paced and multicultural work environment. Prior experience in event planning and project management is highly desirable but not required.

This will be a one-year ETC position with potential of renewal based on successful performance. This position will be based at World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Applicants should submit a resume, two references, a writing sample and a brief statement of key qualifications to Pauline Kokila (Pkokila@worldbank.org) with copy to Klaus Deininger (kdeininger@worldbank.org)