Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation Specialist

Natural disasters are a main source of risk for the poor, and present a serious obstacle to achieving sustainable social and economic development.  Disasters affect the poor most severely; measures taken to manage hazards and reduce their impact provide an effective vehicle to make substantial advances in the fight against poverty.  Since 1980 the World Bank has lent more than US$26 billion for projects related to natural disasters.

The East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of natural disasters, ranging from earthquakes to floods to drought. Since 1990, natural disasters in the region have caused more than $50 billion in damage and affected more than 2 billion people (CRED – EM-DAT database). Climate change adds an additional burden especially on low lying Pacific island countries, where the impacts of sea level rise and more frequent, intense cyclones, rainfall and other hazards threaten to wipe out development gains.

From FY04-07, the Bank has provided financing (or managed trust fund resources of) about $1.5 billion in the region to support primarily post-disaster interventions in response to floods, typhoons, earthquakes, and the 2004 Asia tsunami. The Bank is taking a more strategic approach to disaster risk management, shifting from focusing on post-disaster recovery and reconstruction to supporting clients to address ex ante disaster risk management efforts and policies. Focus is also given to enhancing the resilience of client countries to the potential impacts of climate change through targeted adaptation and vulnerability reduction programs.

The Disaster Risk Management Team, housed in the Transport, Energy and Urban Sustainable Development unit (EASIN) of the East Asia and Pacific Sustainable Development Department (EASSD) in Washington, DC, provides leadership in the region to introduce disaster risk management (DRM) and mitigation practices in development activities and improve emergency response efforts.  The team works closely with the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), which aims at developing comprehensive DRM programs in focus countries by leveraging relatively large amounts of grant resources ($4-5 million/country). In EAP these include Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Philippines and the Pacific Islands.

The key priorities of the DRM team are: 
1) Business development and technical assistance
2) Team building and emergency preparedness
3) Knowledge and learning
4) GFDRR monitoring and follow-up
5) Building regional partnerships

The DRM team is supported by Country Focal Points within each country, by the cross-sectoral, virtual network of staff working across the region, and by the regional Quick Response Team (QRT) in the event of an emergency.

The DRM and climate change adaptation program for Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands is carried out by staff based in Sydney, Australia, with the support of staff located in country offices in Port Moresby, Dili and Honiara and in Washington DC. The program – which includes several operations under preparation and supervision in Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Samoa, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Marshall Islands and programs with regional institutions (SOPAC, SPREP) and donor partners - is rapidly growing.

To this end, the World Bank is seeking to recruit a disaster risk management and climate change adaptation specialist, to be located in Sydney, Australia to work with the Senior Disaster Risk Management/Climate Change Adaptation specialist, also based in Sydney, in the development and implementation of the expanding Pacific DRM/CCA work program.

This is a 3 year co-terminous Term position.