Vertical Chief Economist, Prosperity

Vertical Chief Economist, Prosperity

Job #: req
35320
• Organization:
World Bank
• Sector:
Economics
• Grade: GI
• Term Duration: 4 years 0 months
• Recruitment Type:
International Recruitment
•

Location:

Washington, DC, United States
• Required Language(s):
English
• Closing Date: 1/27/2026 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC.

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? The World Bank Group is a unique global partnership of five institutions driven by a bold vision to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. As one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, we help solve the world’s greatest development challenges. When you join the World Bank Group, you become part of a dynamic, diverse organization with 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide.

We work with public and private sector partners, invest in groundbreaking projects, and use data, research, and technology to bring tangible and transformative changes around the globe. For more information, visit (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..

The Development Economics Vice Presidency (DEC) is the World Bank’s central reservoir of fresh insights into the most pressing challenges of development. It is led by the Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of the World Bank Group, who advises the President and senior managers, serves as the community leader for the WBG’s economists, and helps to keep the institution in the forefront of thinking about development policy.

DEC constitutes one of the world’s largest teams of economists focused on policy solutions for developing economies.

The Chief Economist for Prosperity serves as the principal economic adviser within the vertical, reporting directly to the WBG Chief Economist and DEC Senior Vice President, while maintaining a dotted reporting line to the WBG Prosperity Vice President. S/he will be accountable for:

• Coordinating DEC Research, Markets, Data, Indicators and Impact Group services for the vertical.
• Working with vertical departments and WBG academies to improve economic analysis.
• Collaborating with vertical departments to scale and replicate successful public and private initiatives and adoption of efficient regulations.
• Ensure the alignment of the DEC research program with vertical and regional policy priorities.

The vertical chief economist office will be staffed to intermediate knowledge flows between DEC and the vertical, both by bringing the best of DEC’s services and products to support the Vertical and ensuring the alignment of DEC’s research, markets, and impact programs with the policy priorities of the Vertical.

The WBG Prosperity Vice Presidency leads the WBG’s key global engagements in support of:
Growth and jobs (including supporting teams across the WBG on the jobs agenda); debt sustainability and debt management; improved domestic resource mobilization and expenditure efficiency; a resilient and inclusive financial sector; business‑enabling policies and regulations; trade policy and facilitation; and transparent, effective, and accountable vincular institutions world‑wide. The Vice Presidency also houses the group that examines the distributional/poverty impacts of all policies.

It is responsible for getting the right public and private sector solutions to our operational teams and to our clients, and to produce scalable impact. Its mandate is to deliver knowledge for impact to enable and support the WBG to achieve its goals in support of our mission and specifically: providing guidance on creating more and better jobs; supporting foundational infrastructure and human capital, a business‑enabling policy environment, and private sector mobilization;

focusing on agribusiness, healthcare, infrastructure, manufacturing, and tourism; and support and accelerate corporate targets and commitments. The VPU’s objectives in driving outcomes include replicating and scaling effective solutions, enhancing thought leadership and innovation, and delivering timely knowledge to client teams in the areas of its mandate.

While managing a small team of 4‑5 staff in the Vertical Chief Economist Office, the Vertical Chief Economist will also assist…