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Session Title: National Evaluation Capacity Development
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Panel Session 276 to be held in CROCKETT C on Thursday, Nov 11, 10:55 AM to 12:25 PM
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Sponsored by the International and Cross-cultural Evaluation TIG
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| Chair(s): |
| Hallie Preskill, FSG Social Impact Advisors, hallie.preskill@fsg-impact.org
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| Discussant(s):
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| Michael Quinn Patton, Utilization-Focused Evaluation, mqpatton@prodigy.net
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| Abstract:
Within the social policy reform debate occurring in several countries, much attention has been given to policy advising and formulation, as well as policy (and budget) decision making. However, it appears the real challenge is implementing policy reforms to “translate” policy statements into development results for vulnerable population, including poor children and women. Strengthening national social systems to implement policies is therefore paramount. A strong national evaluation system is crucial to provide essential information and analysis to ensure that such policies are being implemented in the most effective and efficient manner, to review policy implementation and design, and to detect bottlenecks and inform adjustments to enhance systemic capacities to deliver results.
While more and more countries are designing and implementing national evaluation systems, often technical capacity to develop evaluation systems that meet international quality standards is weak. Therefore, national strategies to strengthen evaluation capacities are needed. These strategies should be comprehensive and integrated, addressing both the technical and political side, as well as the three different levels of capacity development: individual, institutional and the enabling environment.
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Towards a Conceptual Framework for National Evaluation Capacity Development
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| Marco Segone, United Nations Children's Fund, msegone@unicef.org
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While explaining how country-led M&E systems are instrumental in facilitating policy reform implementation, the presentation focuses on a conceptual framework for national evaluation capacity development. The presentation highlights how an evaluation capacity development strategy should address the enabling environment, institutional framework and individual level, while taking into consideration both demand and supply side.
The presentation is developed taking into consideration lessons learned and good practices by several stakeholders, including UN agencies, Banks and national and regional professional evaluation organizations.
It builds upon a draft paper developed by United Nations Evaluation Group on evaluation capacity development.
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Successes and Failures in Development of Citizens’ and Their Representatives’ Evaluative Capacities
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| Christina Bierring, United Nations Children's Fund, cbierring@unicef.org
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Citizens’ demand for better social services is an important trigger of government efforts to improve its monitoring and evaluation systems in order to better analyse and assess its performance for development results. In a democratic context, governments are accountable to their citizens and these in turn express their concerns and demand their rights through their representatives such as traditional leaders, elders, parliamentarians, or civil society organizations. International development organizations play an important role in encouraging and developing citizens’ capacity for evidence based influencing to claim better service delivery performance.
Drawing on examples from West Africa, this presentation will explore some successes and failures of international development organizations’ efforts to support the development of citizens’ and their representatives’ evaluative capacities. It will discuss how they are strengthening the ability of citizens and their representatives to access data, to critically evaluate the services they receive and to encourage governments to provide high quality and relevant services for a better quality of life. The presentation will highlight actual opportunities and threats in the institutional context and culture of West African countries to using critical, transparent evidence that is at the core of evaluative capacity.
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Use of Training in Evaluation Capacity Building
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| Alexey Kuzmin, Process Consulting Company, alexey@processconsulting.ru
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This presentation is focused on the use of training in evaluation capacity building (ECB) in organizations. Evaluation training is an important component of ECB. A good utilization-focused evaluation training contributes both to the development of evaluation competence and to the use of evaluation competence in the ongoing practice. To maximize effectiveness of training in ECB intervention it is important to consider the following groups of factors that affect the use of evaluation training in building sustainable evaluation capacity in organizations:
1. Factors that cause involvement of organizations in evaluation training;
2. Factors related to the utilization focus of the training;
3. Factors related to the training itself;
4. Factors related to complementary learning that enforces the use of training;
5. Factors related to the sustainability of the training outcomes.
We’ll present a theoretical framework for an ECB intervention that includes five components identical to the groups of factors described above
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