Evaluation is a key learning tool for the European Commission’ to understand not only what works and what does not, but why and under what circumstances. Evaluations generate knowledge and produce evidence which we use to improve the way we engage with our partners and enhance the impact of our...

This course, developed by the Independent Evaluation Office of the Global Environment Facility (GEF IEO) is a self-paced online training designed to provide foundational frameworks and tools for evaluating the environmental dimensions of a development intervention. With the increasing global...

For over 50 years, evaluators have used theories of change to articulate the causal logic underpinning how an intervention is intended to bring about a desired change. From its origins in programme evaluation, the approach has been adopted more widely for purposes from program design to program...

The Oxford Policy Management (OPM) developed practical guidance for assessing the Value for Money (VfM) of government- and donor-financed programmes and policy interventions. In line with OPM’s focus and mission, it has been predominantly applied in the international development sector, but the...

The Causality Assessment for Landscape Interventions (CALI) methodology supports adaptive management through promoting continuous, participatory reflection on the effectiveness of Project interventions in reducing deforestation at landscape or jurisdictional level. Although the CALI methodology aims...

This EVALSDGs Insight highlights the role of science and research in contributing to the SDGs and presents evaluative framing and methods best suited to address the complexity of Research for Development (R4D) using CGIAR’s approach to evaluate Quality of Science (QoS), and specifically...

This scholarly book aims to invigorate academic discussions surrounding developmental programmes, with the goal of generating insights that can be utilised by evaluation commissioners and decision-makers to help address inequality and promote a more equitable society in Africa through improved...

This publication responds to the need for practical guidance for evaluators, evaluation managers, and programme staff to incorporate a human rights and gender equality lens into the six OECD evaluation criteria: relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability.

This toolkit serves as a practical guide that consolidates the existing knowledge and experiences of selected Indigenous communities and evaluators working with Indigenous communities in Asia Pacific. It also serves as an advocacy tool that seeks to promote culturally responsive evaluations in the...

Ravinder Kumar, associate professor at the University of Greenwich, London, started a discussion on EvalForward aimed at gathering experience of how to assess agroecology and prove its value at farm and food-systems level. The key points that emerged are summarized in this document, which includes...

This guidance from the Footprint Evaluation Initiative aims to support those doing or overseeing evaluations to include environmental sustainability in feasible and useful ways. It is intended to support people who are planning, managing or conducting evaluations, especially within national and sub...

The Footprint Evaluation Initiative aims to ensure that all evaluations consider environmental sustainability, regardless of whether this is an explicit objective of the project, policy or program being evaluated. This report describes four ‘thought experiments’ undertaken as part of this project...

Svetlana Negroustoueva, Evaluation Function Lead at CGIAR, raised two discussions on EvalForward, in 2022 and in 2023. The discussions aimed at: sharing experience on practices in evaluating science, technology and innovation in a research for development context, and reflecting on the beta version...

The second edition of the Impact Evaluation in Practice handbook is a comprehensive and accessible introduction to impact evaluation for policy makers and development practitioners. First published in 2011, it has been used widely across the development and academic communities. The book...

ALNAP Learning Links is a collection of resources and references which can be used for professional development, background reading and/or as part of academic or training programmes or presentations. Key M&E themes include: An overview of evaluation of humanitarian action Improving monitoring in...

This paper explores the practical implications of using mixed methods for monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of international development projects, based on experiences of development researchers and practitioners. It shares lessons and insights that resulted from a three-day joint learning experience...

Judith Kaitesi Katabarwa raised a discussion on EvalForward to encourage the sharing of experience and practice on disability inclusion in evaluation. This document provides a summary of key points emerged under each of the three questions proposed.

Better Evaluation developed 'GeneraTOR, which is a guide to write on the different sections of a Terms of References (ToRs). It is a word document that serves as a template where information can be saved, refined and reviewed. The navigation menu allows to find guidance on the roles and...

This FAO (2023) Guidebook presents a flexible approach that can be used in many types of fisheries co-management systems with different contexts and characteristics. The fisheries co-management effectiveness evaluation in the Guidebook is recommended to be undertaken in two separate but...

This handbook for participatory evaluation was put together by EvalParticipativa as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic from the field of evaluation: in the face of fragility and the limits of self-sufficiency, it intends to foreground the multitude of voices and experiences of the people involved...

This paper of the World Bank Group (2023) busts two myths regarding the use of case-based designs in evaluations that aim to answer effectiveness questions and unpack the relationships between interventions and observed changes in outcomes, broadly known as causal analysis.

The purpose of this Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) guide, published in September 2021, is to promote a common understanding and reliable practice of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) for the International Committee of the Red Cross (IFRC) project/programmes. Although the guide was designed for people...

Evaluability Assessments (EAs) aim at determining the overall quality of the design of an intervention, whether a programme, a project, a strategy, or a policy. They serve as a compass for subsequent evaluations by assessing readiness for evaluation. As such, they have the potential to both pave the...

This research project paper of CEDIL describes the use of secondary evaluation data from four government unconditional cash transfer programmes (UCTs) to identify high- and low-flyers, that is, those households that are able to use the income shock to significantly improve their living standards and...

These pioneering evaluation Guidelines provide the framing, criteria, dimensions, and menu of methods for assessing the quality of research for development (QoR4D) in CGIAR. They can be adapted by like-minded organizations conducting research for development (R4D). The Guidelines introduce a Quality...

This chapter of the book Purposeful Program Theory (2011) of Funnel and Rogers, explains how program theory can be used to learn from success, failure, and mixed results to improve planning, management, evaluation, and evidence-based policy.

This report presents key steps to present the lessons learned from documentation. Capturing lessons learned is essential for helping us to identify good practices, avoid repeating errors, and to tap into the cumulative knowledge we have as an Organization and to use that knowledge to strengthen our...

These tips of USAID provide practical advice and suggestions on issues related to performance monitoring and evaluation. They provide guidance for evaluators on the structure, content, and style of evaluation reports.

This report of The Nature Conservancy provides an opportunity to discuss successes during the project, unintended outcomes, and recommendations for others involved in similar future projects. The report mentions a guide that presents the main lessons learned.

In this report, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) proposes a framework of evaluation lessons within the context of face-to-face communication with project/programme managers to ensure that lessons truly become 'lessons learned'.

The map of impact evaluation uses was designed as a pedagogical tool for evaluation practitioners: it allows evaluation teams to reflect on the actual uses that commissioners make of evaluations, particularly impact evaluations, and to collectively increase their capacity to propose relevant...

ALNAP adapted an action learning approach for use in frontline humanitarian contexts. Action learning is a practical approach to learning-by-doing that only requires a limited time and resource investment. It focuses on both reflection and practical solutions, by encouraging actions that can have an...

This resource pack aims to strengthen frontline learning by introducing ‘action learning’ as a straightforward approach to sharing knowledge and solving problems in fast-paced environments. The pack is for programme staff who are implementing projects, staff in monitoring, evaluation, accountability...

This handbook, assembled by Mosaic & ZENDialogue, address how Results-Based Management (RBM) can be used to focus on achieving outcomes, implementing performance measurement, learning, and adapting, as well as reporting performance. RBM influences how we approach every stage in the programme cycle...

This resource of the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank focuses on the use of traditional and new methods and data sources in generating poverty maps, which are an increasingly useful tool for evaluation. Using new sources of relevant data in generating such maps helps improving how we...

Lamia Remaud her paper presents a new system-based approach to designing and evaluating programmes in a way that fully embeds environment and biodiversity issues. It seeks to put nature back at the centre of development work in an effort to encourage stronger ambitions when it comes to mitigating or...

This guidance document of UNICEF provides more detailed guidance on the core building blocks of impact evaluation (theory of change, evaluative criteria and evaluative reasoning), different evaluation designs and methods for data collection and analysis, and options in terms of participatory...

The review of eight projects highlights some of the methodological issues that are unique to post project (as opposed to end of project) evaluation, and point to the advantages of planning for sustainability measurement from the outset of the project.

This W.K. Kellog Foundation Evaluation Handbook is designed to encourage dialogue about the role evaluation should play at the project level. We encourage you to think differently about evaluation, so that together we can move the discipline from a stand-alone monitoring process to an integrated and...

This evaluation guide overviews evaluation process and provides more detail about each stage in the evaluation process. The guide demonstrates how to engage with stakeholders and explains how to develop an evaluation using a logic model, a measurement framework and an evaluation plan. Finally, the...

This briefing paper from joint UNICEF-BetterEvaluation and EvalSDGs, helps identifying where innovation might be most needed and develop appropriate strategies to support innovation. It describes a number of innovations to address particular challenges and provides links to more information about...

In this Research Project Paper, CEDIL argues that practitioners can pursue at least three pathways to social accountability scale: the replication of best practice, through leveraging the countervailing power of resistance, and seeking resonance with existing public sector efforts.

This Methods Working Paper of CEDIL explains how evaluations can go beyond traditional outcome measurement and explore the underlying drivers of impact and the behaviours of beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries.

Impacts of climate shocks risk undermining or even reversing sustainable development progress both locally and globally. Solutions that work now may not be suitable for the future: there is an urgent need for countries and the international community to move from looking at ‘what works’ to...

A series of brochures on the OECD/DAC Criteria has been developed by the Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation under the guidance of Engaging parliamentarians for demand and use of evaluation of Asia Pacific Regional Evaluation Strategy. The purpose of the brochures is to help...

This guide provides an overview of the use of both traditional and novel data sources in generating poverty maps and the related methodological implications. It includes both traditional and new methods and data sources in generating poverty maps, which are an increasingly useful tool for evaluation...

CEDIL's working paper demonstrates that measurement is crucial to evaluation. Without appropriate measures, we cannot assess the effectiveness of policy. In this latest CEDIL Methods Working Paper, the authors address several conceptual issues linked to the construction and validation of appropriate...

This guideline of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) of South Africa provides guidance to evaluators and commissioners of evaluation on how to apply an equity criterion in evaluation.

This guideline from the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) of South Africa provides technical guidance on applying a Climate and Ecosystem Health (CEH) lens when undertaking evaluative work.

This practical manual provides guidance on how to use geographic information systems (GIS) in the monitoring and evaluation of rural development projects. With over 20 maps showing IFAD-funded projects, it describes how to map a project's activities and how to use the data the map shows. It provides...

This manual from ENAP demonstrates key concepts, methodological issues, as well as practical examples from the authors and reflective chapters. The manual is organized by: (1) a conceptual phase, (2) methodological phase, (3) empirical and analytical phase, (4) dissemination and transfer phase.

This presentation illustrates four pathways how Country-led Evaluations can inform the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs). The presentation also demonstrates the difference with the Country-led Evaluations and VNRs.

Seven years after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement, methods and approaches for evaluating sustainable development interventions have remained largely unchanged and are failing to provide a basis for understanding how future sustainable development interventions can withstand...

This book explores a range of new and older systems mapping methods focused on representing causal relationships in systems. In a practical manner, it describes the methods and considers the differences between them; describes how to use them yourself; describes how to choose between and combine...

Hivos values working with Theory of Change (ToC) as an appropriate approach to guide its strategic thinking and action, as well as its collaborative action with others. The use of a ToC approach fosters critical questioning of all aspects of change interventions and supports adaptive planning and...

This paper of CEDIL examines the current state of each of the waves (outcome monitoring, impact evaluation, systematic reviews and knowledge brokering) of the evidence revolution. The paper offers a critical perspective on each wave, and discuss the implications for evaluation in the field of...

This paper of CEDIL looks at the technical issues associated with the representation of Theories of Change and the implications of design choices for the evaluability of those theories.

This paper by CEDIL includes the use of innovative techniques to form the specific evaluative questions being asked and tested, to gather the right type of data and information on outcomes and intermediating variables, to explain findings and to disseminate them to the appropriate decision-makers...

The lack of adequate measures to capture relevant factors, and the prevalence of measurement error in existing ones, often constitute the main impediment to robust policy evaluation. Random assignment of a given treatment, when feasible, may allow for the identification of causal effects, given that...

Systematic reviews summarise and synthesise the global evidence about an intervention. By incorporating causal chain analysis, a systematic review moves beyond the question of ‘does it work?’ to ‘why does it work, for whom, under what circumstances and at what cost?’. The causal chain analysis...

This brief takes a practical, how-to approach in outlining ten steps for building a middle-level theory of change.

In the CEDIL Methods brief, ‘Evaluating complex interventions: What are appropriate methods?’ we identify four types of complex development interventions: long causal chain interventions, multicomponent interventions, portfolio interventions, and system-level interventions. These interventions are...

Timely evaluations produce results when they are needed to inform decision making while using appropriate, rigorous designs. While traditionally evaluations are carried out at the end of a programme, this brief explores methods for evaluation during the course of a programme. Such approaches are...

Choosing appropriate approaches and methods are pre-requisites for credible, independent and useful evaluation exercises in the United Nations. The Compendium of Evaluation Methods Reviewed is a guidance document resulting from discussions among members of the UNEG Working Group on Evaluation...

Impact evaluations are studies that attempt to measure the causal impact of a project, program or policy on one or more outcomes of. This book provides a comprehensive exposition of how to conduct impact evaluations. Part I provides an overview of impact evaluations and comprises five chapters which...

This SenseMaker Practitioner Guide is for those who wish to use SenseMaker to conduct assessments, monitor progress, and undertake evaluations or research. Drawing on more than a decade of experience, the authors share dozens of examples from international development, providing practical tips and...

Science-Metrix developed this technical note to provide recommendations on the use of bibliometrics in mixed-methods evaluations and monitoring of Quality of Science (QoS) in One CGIAR research. As such, this technical note combines bibliometric expertise with inputs from CGIAR stakeholders and...

This paper was prepared by the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank for international development specialists, with both evaluation professionals and nutrition sector practitioners in mind. It presents the methodology and results used to pilot and test the applicability, usefulness, and...

In this paper, fourteen leading evaluation practitioners were asked to reflect on lessons from the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) for evaluation practice. Questions discussed include the following: the importance of evaluating equity between rich and poor countries and other forms of climate...

This briefing note summarizes the outcomes of the post-COP26 dialogue: The role of evaluation for climate action. A post-COP26 dialogue on how evaluative evidence can help deliver the Paris Agreement. Evaluation can bring a lot of value to learning and forging solutions as part of global efforts to...

This ALNAP paper is intended to support development and humanitarian managers, evaluation functions and evaluators as they plan and implement Real-Time Evaluations and Real-Time Learning exercises of their respective organisation’s COVID-19 response, and of future humanitarian action. The paper...

In recent years, evaluation has emerged as an increasingly important function in determining the worth and value of development interventions in terms of their relevance, impact, performance, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability. Evaluation has been formalized as a function in most...

This CEDIL Methods Working Paper reviews promising methods for the evaluation of complex interventions that are new or have been used in a limited way. It offers a taxonomy of complex interventions in international development and draws on literature to discuss several methods that can be used to...

Sous la direction de Thomas Delahais, Agathe Devaux-Spatarakis, Anne Revillard et Valéry Ridde, cet ouvrage en accès ouvert entend favoriser les échanges et contribuer à la consolidation d’un socle de références communes en évaluation. Nombre d'institutions publiques locales, nationales ou...

This guidance note was developed by the Office of Evaluation (OED) of FAO to support the planning, formulation and conduct of evaluation syntheses. It provides definitions, a typology of synthesis which can be appropriate to conduct depending whether less or more time and resources are available. as...

This handbook was developed by the EU LIASON Project Better Rural Innovation: Linking Actors, Instruments and Policies through Networks, and contains 37 tools that can be used to evaluate/assess the impact of interactive innovation. The tools are practice-ready: each is explained in a procedural...

This note by the Asian Development Bank summarizes the meanings of evaluation utilization and the factors influencing evaluation utilizations based on literature review. Adapted by John Scott Bayley, Evaluation Specialist, ADB, 2018.

This paper describes an evaluation capacity building (ECB) approach designed to help community development practitioners work more effectively with assumptions through the intentional infusion of evaluative thinking (ET) into the program planning, monitoring, and evaluation process. The focus is on...

This brief describes the commonalities and differences of Outcome Mapping and Outcome Harvesting. It presents the main concepts shared by the approaches, how they differ and what to consider when deciding which approach to use or whether to use them together. This brief was co-produced by the...

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has established common definitions for six evaluation criteria – relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability – to support consistent, high-quality evaluation. These criteria provide a normative framework...

This publication showcases good and promising practices on gender-responsive evaluation approaches and methods by featuring gender-responsive evaluations from UN Women and other UN entities. With its emphasis on inclusion, participation and non-discrimination, gender-responsive evaluation can aid in...

This brief by Twende Mbele looks at Rapid Evaluations in the public sector of selected African Countries. Rapid evaluations are intended to reduce the costs of evaluation projects and the time they take, by producing a result that can feed into policy and practice quickly, but yet is sufficiently...

Definiciones revisadas de los criterios de evaluación y principios para su utilización. Esta adaptación al español de “Better Criteria for Better Evaluation” debería contribuir a sensibilizar sobre la importancia de la evaluación, a fortalecer las políticas públicas y a apoyar el desarrollo de la...

This guide compiled by the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank provides an overview of evaluation approaches and methods that have been used in the field of international development evaluation. For each method, a detailed guidance note presents the method’s main features and procedural...

Dans cette vidéo, Olivier Cossée du Bureau de l’évaluation de la FAO, donne des conseils pratiques sur comment combiner approches qualitatives et quantitatives dans les études d’impact.

This interactive report has been produced to disseminate the findings of the study on evaluation dissemination at DG DEVCO, EU Delegations and non-EU organisations around the world such as the Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, International Fund for Agricultural Development, World...

This paper presents an overview of innovative technologies to overcome the obstacles to evaluation in fragile and conflict affected states and in hard-to reach-areas. It is based on lessons learned from a series of conferences held by the European Union DG DEVCO’s Evaluation Support Service in 2019...

This briefing note explores the use of outcome mapping (OM) as a monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) approach to track behavioural change and inform adaptation for two programmes: the Pathways to Resilience in Semi-arid Economies (PRISE) research consortium and the Accountability in Tanzania...

The USAID Monitoring and Evaluation and Learning Activity in Jordan created a full training package on facilitating a TOC exercise, which includes presentations and exercises downloadable at the link on the right.

The Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE) has prepared an evaluation synthesis report on Community-Driven Development (CDD), based on an in-depth review of a representative sample of IFAD projects carried out since 1978. CDD has played a pivotal role in IFAD’s operations for over 30 years...

A synthesis of the results and recommendations of TEEB for Agriculture and Food’s Scientific and Economic Foundations Report This report serves as a synthesis of the 2018 Scientific and Economic Foundations report and proposes a new and comprehensive Evaluation Framework in the field of agriculture...

This report published by the UN Global Pulse provides guidelines for evaluators, evaluation and programme managers, policy makers and funding agencies on how to take advantage of the rapidly emerging field of big data in the design and implementation of systems for monitoring and evaluating...

In this report published by the Rockfeller Foundation, Peter York, Michael Bamberger and Veronica OlazabaI take an in-depth look at how new information technologies will dramatically impact how we track progress and assess impact of programs and policies. With the rapid expansion of big data and...

Are impact evaluation and impact evaluation synthesis contributing to evidence generation and use in low- and middleincome countries? The authors of the present paper researched international organizations and countries including Mexico, Colombia, South Africa, Uganda, and Philippines to understand...

Utilization Focused Evaluation (UFE) facilitates a learning process in which people in the real world apply evaluation findings and experiences to their work. The focus is on intended users. UFE does not prescribe any specific content, method, or theory. It is a guiding framework, rather than a...

In these short videos Dr Bassirou Chitou, M&E Expert and international instructor at the International Program for Development Evaluation Training (IPDET), illustrates different methodological aspects in evaluation, and specifically: "Purposeful versus probabilty sampling in evaluation", "Sampling...

This webinar was held on 12 February 2020 and presented the revised OECD DAC Criteria to interested members of the EvalForward Community of Practice with examples on their contextualization in the agriculture / food security sector.

This text, authored by Linda G. Morra Imas and Ray C. Rist, is intended as a tool for use in building development evaluation capacity. It aims to help development evaluators think about and explore the new evaluation architecture and especially to design and conduct evaluations that focus on results...

Local and national evaluators need support if they are to use SDG evaluation as an opportunity to improve policies and programmes closer to home, applying tailored approaches. This guide aims to provide this support and motivate evaluation that embodies the principles of Agenda 2030. The guide is...

Despite the huge growth in volume of evaluations published by humanitarian actors, the evaluation system still struggles to provide evidence about collective performance of the humanitarian sector. Evaluation synthesis provides one option for building information about response-wide performance...

This webinar was held on 30 October 2019 and presented the experience of different UN agencies and the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) in using synthesis and meta-analysis in evaluation. It was an initiative of the Interest Group on methodologies of the UNEG (United Nations...

This document serves as guidance on how the FAO Office of Evaluation can assess the processes and outcomes of FAO capacity development interventions. Although primarily targeting evaluation practitioners in FAO, the framework can be used by anyone engaged in project design, implementation and...

This briefing looks at how the 2030 Agenda and its goals can provide a sustainable development framing for a broader range of national evaluation efforts. Key issues examined are: assessing how well national policies, programmes and projects fit with one another and across the SDGs; the value of the...

This paper looks at a range of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) innovations that are designed specifically to provide input to ongoing iterative decision-making and learning at the project level. It identifies three key areas for potential innovation: 1) timing of M&E data provision; 2) flexibility...

This publication presents the essential 'things to know' about evaluation in 10 infographics. It was prepared by ODI's Research and Policy in Development Programme (RAPID) in support of the International Year of Evaluation 2015.

This book compiles seven evaluation stories in development contexts, which in a diversified and innovative manner, produced positive effects in the place in which they took place. Scattered all over Latin America and the Caribbean, these narratives cover evaluation of interventions that worked with...

Edited by the International Development Evaluation Association - IDEAS, this book presents an authoritative overview of the role of evaluation in generating evidence for informed decision making and learning to advance sustainable development. Agenda 2030 includes the Sustainable Development Goals...

The Wilton Park event on Revisiting independence, objectivity, and the critically reflective role of evaluation for the SDG era took place from 25 to 27 June in West Sussex, UK. The purpose of this dialogue was to enable a high level, practical but informal debate, addressing conceptual and...

The Independent Evaluation Office and the Government of Turkey co-hosted the 2017 International Conference on National Evaluation Capacities (NEC) in Istanbul, in collaboration with the UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and CIS and the European Evaluation Society (EES). The theme of the conference was...