Consultant, Senior Software Developer ARV

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance

Job Title:  Senior Software Developer ARV Consultant 

Type of Contract: When Actually Employed Consultant

Division: ARC African Risk Capacity

Duty Station (City, Country):   Remotely based

Duration: 55 days in 2024 with the possibility of extension

Reporting to: Director, Research and Developments Department (RND), ARC

African Risk Capacity (ARC) is a Specialised Agency of the African Union. The ARC Agency leads the ARC Group, a development finance institution that provides financial tools and infrastructure to help countries manage natural disaster risk and adapt to climate change. It counts 39 AU countries as members and is supervised by a ministerial level governing board elected by its Conference of the Parties. The ARC design and establishment phase was managed by WFP, under a MoU with the African Union, and WFP continues to provide administrative services support to the ARC Agency through an administrative services agreement.

In 2014, ARC launched its initial risk insurance product for member states through its financial affiliate the ARC Insurance Company Limited (ARC Ltd). ARC Ltd is a specialist hybrid mutual insurance company and Africa’s first ever disaster insurance pool, aggregating risk by issuing insurance policies to participating governments and transferring it to the international market. ARC uses the satellite weather surveillance software Africa RiskView to estimate the impact of drought on vulnerable populations – and the response costs required to assist them – before a season begins, and as it progresses, so that index-based insurance payouts, based on Africa RiskView, are triggered at or before harvest time if the rains are poor. ARC Ltd issued drought insurance policies totalling USD 129 million for a total premium cost of USD 17 million to a first group of African governments – Kenya, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal – in May 2014, marking the launch of the inaugural ARC pool with the support of a USD 100 million initial capital commitment provided by the governments of Germany (through KfW on behalf of BMZ) and the United Kingdom (DFID). The pool has continued to grow and ARC aims to reach more Member States by expanding the insurance products offered by ARC Ltd to include flood, tropical cyclone and outbreak & epidemic risk.

Responsibilities

Africa RiskView (ARV) is the core technical engine of the ARC programme used to underpin ARC Ltd insurance contracts and is the basis for expansion of the ARC insurance programme to more country clients and more perils, in particular flood and cyclone risk. An experienced quantitative developer and software engineer, Mr. Rosman has been providing critical technical support to the development of ARV since 2012 when he joined the expanded software development team. As the ARC initiative has now entered its operational phase, with ARV becoming the go-to natural disaster financial risk management tool for many African countries and partners underwriting significant volumes of risk, ensuring the tool and its related applications can continue to grow and meet user demands smoothly is a critical operating issue for both ARC Agency and ARC Ltd. Within this context Mr. Rosman has a senior software developer role within the ARC Secretariat Technical Team, responsible for the development of ARV Online and the ARV Calculation Engine – the tool which underpins ARC Ltd’s insurance contracts – and therefore helping to ensure ARV meets the needs of ARC Agency and its clients across different operating platforms (ARV Desktop, Calculation Engine, Web version).

Working in close coordination with the other members of the ARV Development Team and the ARC Technical and R&D Teams in Johannesburg, and reporting to ARC Director of Research & Development, the consultant will have the following responsibilities:

1. Leading the timely production of the annual ARV Drought Calculation Engine and input data for ARC Ltd to underpin each new insurance pool.

2. Support integration of tropical cyclones and flood components into ARV platform, and the development of additional analysis tools required to support the implementation of these new risk modules.

3. Testing and cross-checking new releases to ensure accuracy and consistency of calculations across all ARV products, particularly for the development of the annual ARV Drought Calculation Engine for ARC Ltd, and ensuring improvements are coordinated and aligned with ARV Desktop.

4. Contributing to the further design and development of ARV Desktop, including its user interface and functionalities.

5. Contributing to development of server-based functionality, data storage and distribution as emphasis will shift to web based applications, with an emphasis on accuracy, replicability and speed optimization, for an enhanced user-experience.

6. Ensuring all products are robust, secure and work efficiently in a range of downloading, operating and data failure environments and can accommodate future modifications, updates and improvements with ease, suggesting and making modifications where required. He will endeavour to resolve any critical issues regarding the code in a reasonable time.

7. Organizing and implementing localization of the software and its products.

8. Providing support, input and guidance to collaborations with technical partners on ARV and participating in team meetings, conferences and missions as required.

9. Performing other tasks as directed by the Director of Research & Development, senior ARC staff and working closely with the ARC Secretariat Technical Team and ARV users, as required

Deliverables at the End of The Contract:

In addition to timely, seasoned technical assistance to the ARC Development Team and RD Department, the output of this work will be fully documented code satisfying the requirements outlined in “Responsibilities” above, to ensure that all code can be fully supported and modified by ARC independently moving forward.

Qualifications and experience required

Education:

Advanced university degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, Engineering, Natural Sciences, or other relevant quantitative discipline.

Experience:

Minimum of 12 years of experience working on software development and the design and development of systems and applications needed to fulfill business requirements.

Experience in Africa, working with African governments, is a strong asset.

Knowledge & Skills:

Programming skills in Delphi, Visual Studio, ASP.NET, MySQL, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and C#. Demonstrable experience in building Apps for phones and tablets is a strong asset.

Strong problem solving capabilities. Experience in identifying problems and reviewing related information to develop, evaluate and implement software and App options.

Demonstrated ability to take a strategic view across a large complex programme with the ability to follow, develop and lead a given scope of work.

Languages:

International Professional: Fluency (level C) in English. Another ARC working language (French or Portuguese) a strong asset.

Deadline for applications: 23 June 2024

Ref.: VA No. 833272

Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.