Initiate backup from routine?

[Troels Arvin]

Hello,

I would like to allow a co-worker to perform a backup of a database, 
such that the backup is saved to the database server itself. One use 
case is that (s)he would like an extra backup of a database, just before 
an application update is deployed. The co-worker doesn't have shell 
access on the DB server (so no sudo option), and we would like to allow 
this to happen without having to involve a DBA.

Is it possible to call pg_dump (or equivalent action) through a 
procedure/function?

--
Regards,
Troels Arvin