Job Description

IFC will not sponsor a visa or work authorization for this position. Applicants must have valid employment authorization per local laws to work for the duration of the appointment and the candidate for this role must be based in the United States.

IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities. Our mission is to leverage the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet.

IFC’s Vice Presidency for Economics & Private Sector Development provides thought leadership on private sector development, in collaboration with economists throughout the World Bank Group, and helps guide IFC operations towards development outcomes. The Development Impact Measurement Department (CDI), part of the Economics & Private Sector Development Vice Presidency, analyzes economic sectors with a view to identifying opportunities and solutions for private sector development, and works closely with IFC Operations in formulating sector priorities and strategies.

As part of IFC’s financial sector operations, IFC supports banks in emerging market and developing economies with investment and advisory services to help expand their lending to MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises). The Department is looking for a Short-Term Consultant to support its Financial Institutions unit (CDIFI) in the implementation of the Measurement, Research and Evaluation agenda for MSME Finance. The Consultant will support the development and implementation of a measurement and research agenda seeking to expand the base of evidence on IFC client financial institutions and the MSMEs that benefit from expanded access to finance, to better understand and document the reach and impact from IFC investments and programs in emerging and developing economies. Broadly, the research questions include (but are not limited to):

• What is the scale and composition of IFC's MSME clients' portfolios? What are key characteristics and needs of the MSMEs reached by our clients and the main features of the loans they take?
• Are IFC loans, risk-sharing and incentives leading IFC client financial institutions to effectively expand their portfolios and improve access to finance among MSMEs?
• What is the impact of IFC clients' loan portfolio growth on MSME-level outcomes?
• What are the catalytic effects of IFC's interventions on the broader market?

Role & Responsibilities

The Consultant will be expected to play a central role in an effort to collect and analyze loan portfolio and beneficiary data that IFC collects from client financial institutions serving MSMEs, as well as to contribute to other aspects of the research and evaluation agenda as needed.

Responsibilities under the consultancy include but are not limited to:

• Contribute to analyzing large scale datasets on loan portfolios from client financial institution and the profile of MSME borrowers across IFC’s MSME finance portfolio, including by developing tools and processes;
• Lead quality control, including data cleaning and ensuring that the data received is complete and of high quality;
• Engage with IFC operations to support client-level data requests to ensure timely aggregation of data;
• Contribute to data analysis, including producing summary statistics, running and interpreting regressions to extract insights on portfolio trends and characteristics;
• Contribute to the preparation of reports, presentations, and research notes on the data collected;
• Support other components (country-level case studies, impact assessments) of this measurement and research agenda as needed.

Selection Criteria

• Master’s degree or PhD in economics, data science, statistics or equivalent professional qualification.
• A minimum of 3-5 years of relevant professional experience, excluding internships as well as RA positions while completing a degree.
• Demonstrated statistical skills and experience with managing large datasets and financial services data is required. Advanced skills in Excel and Stata are necessary for this role, knowledge of additional statistical software (Python, R etc) a plus. Experience with machine learning techniques for data cleaning and analysis is a plus.
• Experience with PowerBi, Tableau or other visualization software a plus.
• Strong written and verbal communications skills.
• Experience with financial institution information systems (MIS), MSMEs, and credit data, a plus.
• Strong team player, with proven ability to take work collaboratively in a team environment. Experience working in a multi-member research project strongly preferred.
• Proven capability to handle complex assignments and produce work to a high professional standard.

Contract details and CV/Resume submission

• The contract is offered initially for 75 days at the STC 2 pay scale and requires a minimum of 30 hours a week from Feb 17, 2025 to June 30, 2025 (extension possible) with a presence strong preference for working in DC, but preference for remote work can be considered.
• Candidates completing their PhD or with preference working abroad should explicitly state so in their cover letter.
• To express interest, please email to vmonfiston@ifc.org with “MSME Finance STC” in the subject line by February 7, 2025 - Applications must include a CV and Cover Letter and only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

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