WBG Pioneer - AgriConnect Europe Intern

Description

WBG Pioneers, the World Bank Group’s Internship Program, offers undergraduate and postgraduate students a high impact learning experience at the heart of global development. Participants gain hands on experience in a diverse and dynamic environment, contribute fresh perspectives and innovative ideas, and connect with international professionals working to end poverty on a livable planet.

Background/Organizational Context 

 By 2050, the world’s farmers will need to feed 10 billion people - 2 billion more than today. This increased demand for food is a challenge, particularly as much of the world's food - roughly 80 percent - is grown by family farms, many of whom remain stuck in subsistence farming due to limited access to electricity, storage, training, market access, and commercial finance.  

AgriConnect, a flagship World Bank Group initiative, aims to break this cycle and help 300 million farmers move from subsistence to surplus by building the right ecosystem for farmers and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to move up the value chain — strengthening cooperatives, improving market links, and enhancing access to finance and digital tools.  

Europe's agri-food system is central to this effort. The region is home to some of the world's leading grain and oilseed exporters, alongside millions of smallholders and SMEs whose growth is held back by policy and regulatory barriers, fragmented value chains, limited access to finance, and infrastructure gaps. AgriConnect is responding with country-level engagements across key geographies globally. 

IFC's Manufacturing, Agribusiness & Services (MAS) team leads AgriConnect's delivery in Europe and is seeking a motivated intern to support delivery of this flagship initiative across the region. 

Duties and Responsibilities 
Under the supervision of the AgriConnect Europe team, the intern will support the design and implementation of the AgriConnect initiative in the EUR region.  Specific responsibilities include: 

 •   Sector and Solutions Research. Supporting research and analysis on agri-food sector trends, value chains, and bottlenecks across priority countries in the Europe region. Contributing to the mapping of potential anchor firms, cooperatives, and financial institutions for engagement under AgriConnect pillars. 

 •   Joint Implementation Plan Support. Contributing to the validation of country-level Joint Implementation Plans for AgriConnect in Europe, including consolidating feedback and tracking outstanding inputs, and developing and maintaining a tracking tool to monitor plan validation status, launch readiness milestones, and partner engagement.  

•   Cross-Institutional Coordination. Maintaining a stakeholder and workstream map across IBRD/IDA, IFC, and MIGA activities related to AgriConnect in each Europe AgriConnect country, to support visibility and coordination and to help identify duplication or gaps. 

 •   Launch and Stakeholder Event Coordination. Supporting the planning of AgriConnect launch activities in the Europe region, including drafting event concept notes, identifying potential government, private sector, and donor participants, and coordinating logistics for stakeholder meetings and workshops.  

•   Knowledge Products and Communications. Drafting and providing inputs to briefing materials, presentations, talking points, knowledge products, case studies, and lessons-learned materials  

•   Other Assigned Tasks. Performing other related tasks, as assigned by the supervisor to support the team's work program.  

Selection Criteria

•   Enrollment in a full-time master's degree/PhD program in agricultural economics, development economics, business administration, international development, or a related field, with an expected graduation date after the anticipated internship period. 
•   Strong interest in agribusiness, private sector development, and international development. 
•   Excellent analytical, research, and writing skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information into clear and concise outputs. 
•   Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment. 
•   Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint); familiarity with data visualization or analytical tools is a plus. 
•   Excellent oral and written communication skills in English; knowledge of additional languages relevant to the Europe region (e.g., Ukrainian, Romanian, Polish, or others) is an advantage. 
•   Ability to work both independently and collaboratively across teams and with external stakeholders. 
•   Prior coursework, research, or work experience related to agribusiness, food systems, or private sector development is desirable but not required. 

No-Fee Internship Eligibility
This position is offered under the WBG Pioneers No-Fee Internship Track. Students may be offered a no-fee STT appointment provided that they either: (a) are enrolled in a Master's, PhD, or similar graduate program during the entire internship (or are in the fifth year or higher of a degree program in countries where higher education is not divided into undergraduate and graduate stages) and provide an official letter from their university confirming that the internship fulfills academic requirements for at least one term of study; or (b) are enrolled in undergraduate or graduate studies and receive a stipend from their university at least equivalent to the minimum STT T1 fee level in effect at the start of the assignment, as confirmed by an official university letter.

Note: Please limit your applications to a maximum of three positions. Applications exceeding this limit will not be considered.

WBG Culture Attributes:
1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

The World Bank Group values diversity and encourages all qualified candidates who are nationals of World Bank Group member countries to apply, regardless of gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.  Sub-Saharan African nationals, Caribbean nationals, and female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.