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Building Demand and Supply For Evaluation in Africa Vol 1 PDF
Building Demand and Supply For Evaluation in Africa Vol 1 PDF
Disclaimer:
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70 News in Pictures
Call for contributions:
Evaluation Matters is a quar-
terly magazine issued in both
English and French, by IDEV,
Independent Development
Evaluation of the AfDB. We
welcome topical articles from
writers’ original work and will
be pleased to consider con-
tributions for the themes in
the above Editorial Calendar.
See details at http://idev.
afdb.org/en/document/
editorial-calendar-2018
eVALUation Matters
First Quarter 2018
©:AfDB
Happy reading!
Key Messages
❚❚ African countries can benefit from world-wide networking, knowledge and experiences
in evaluation in order to build their own evaluation capacities. This will result in sound,
credible and efficient evaluation systems that enable informed policy decisions, and
bring about the changes their societies are yearning for.
“F
or the last two decades, authority is fragmented and there are
important social and multiple actors involved in policy-making.
economic progress has been Basic principles for governance, such as
achieved in many countries, accountability, transparency and effec-
but reducing poverty and tiveness, are no longer concerns reserved
inequality remains a fundamental chal- for international organizations, govern-
lenge, particularly in Africa. All over the ments and national institutions - ordinary
world, democracies are facing greater citizens are demanding a bigger role in the
development challenges while citi- decisions that affect their lives.
zens’ expectations are higher than ever.
A more informed society, driven by inno- In this setting, a question may be asked:
vations and technological development, does evaluation strengthen democratic
is now eager to reap the benefits of more systems? Hanberger (2004) argues
sustainable development. Today, political that governance, democracy and
Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa 9
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©:AfDB
10 Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa 11
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
function still requires backup initiatives. For the last decade, the Independent
Strengthening national evaluation capaci- Evaluation Office (IEO) of the United
ties involves creating the institutional and Nations Development Programme
environmental conditions needed to put (UNDP) has been supporting activities
evaluation into practice; it also implies to advance an evaluation culture and
stakeholders’ participation and adopting practice as a tool for accountability and
approaches that fit the national context. learning. Among them is the National
Mostly, what is needed are evaluation capac- Evaluation Capacities (NEC) Conference
ities to produce evidence of whether the series organized by the IEO. Since the
policies, programmes and projects imple- first NEC Conference in Morocco, in 2009,
mented to achieve the national agenda are the biannual conferences have been an
giving the expected results, and determin- evolving process that have successfully
ing if these results are equitable, relevant linked theory with practice, vision and
and sustainable. ideals with realities (Naidoo and Soares,
2017). One of the conclusions at the 2011
NEC Conference (Johannesburg, South
The engagement of Africa Africa) was that the need for strength-
with the UNDP NEC series ening incentives and capacities, both to
produce and use evaluations, is essential.
Over the years, the evaluation commu- The 4th Conference, in Bangkok (Thai-
nity has accumulated a wealth of knowl- land), adopted a set of 18 commitments
edge in the assessment of development to promote evaluation use, define and
initiatives. Exchanging information, explor- enhance evaluation processes and meth-
ing new approaches, sharing innovations, ods, engage stakeholders and explore
best practices and lessons drawn from options for institutional structures for
past experiences, have become a regular managing evaluations.
practice among members of the evalua-
tion community.
2013 BRAZIL
• Theme: Independence, 2017 TURKEY
2009 MOROCCO Credibility & • Theme: People, Planet &
1st NEC conference Use of Evaluation Progress in the SDG Era
12 Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Since its start, the NEC Conference One lesson learned from the NEC confer-
has grown in participation and scope ences is that government and partner
to become one of the leading events for commitment through long-term invest-
learning and sharing lessons, innovations, ment and change is needed to build
experiences, and perspectives in evalua- national evaluation capacities, but can be
tion. The unprecedented turnout at the diluted if they do not set clear goals and
last conference, in October 2017 in Istanbul follow-up. Varying levels of development in
(Turkey), attended by more than 500 partic- institutional settings and legal frameworks
ipants, illustrates the increasing interest in in the countries reflect their different
evaluation. Almost 30 percent of partici- political contexts, government interests
pants from governments and professional and national development progress. These
associations were from Africa. This wide
African representation was possible
thanks largely to generous donations “Since its start, the NEC Conference
from the governments of Finland, Sweden, has grown in participation and
Norway and the Netherlands, as well as
scope to become one of the leading
the support of partners such as the Inde-
pendent Development Evaluation (IDEV) events for learning and sharing
of the African Development Bank, which lessons, innovations, experiences,
contributed to a bursary programme and perspectives in evaluation”.
for African representation. A total of 37
African countries were represented by 111
participants, including 33 women, allowing
all attendees to learn first-hand from the are aspects of national evaluation capaci-
experiences of Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, ties that are complex and linked to each
Ethiopia, Kenya and Liberia, among others. country’s development agenda. Thus, they
Overall, the event offered a unique oppor- should be taken into consideration when
tunity to explore the implications of the developing future evaluation agendas
SDGs for evaluation and the development (Naidoo and Soares, 2017).
of new partnerships.
ALGERIA
LIBYA EGYPT
SAUDI
ARABIA
MAURITIANIA
MALI NIGER
SENEGAL
GAMBIA
CHAD
SUDAN ERITREA YEMEN
2017
GUINEA-BISSAU
GUINEA
BURKINA FASO
BENIN
2015
SIERRA LEONE NIGERIA
37 Countries
CÔTE D’IVOIRE ETHIOPIA
SOUTH SUDAN
GHANA
2013
LIBERIA
CAMEROON
20 Countries
EQUATORIAL GUINEA UGANDA
KENYA
15 Countries
2011
CONGO DRC RWANDA
BURUNDI
TANZANIA
7 Countries
ANGOLA COMOROS
2009
MALAWI
ZAMBIA
9 Countries
ZIMBABWE MADAGASCAR
MAURITIUS
BOTSWANA
SWAZILAND
SOUTH AFRICA
Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa 13
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©:AfDB
14 Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa 15
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
16 Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
References
AfrEA (2017). 8th AfrEA International Conference. Close- Naidoo, I. And Soares, A. R. (2017). “Incorporating the Sustaina-
out Report. Available at: http://afrea.org/wp-content/ ble Development Goals in National Evaluation Capacity Devel-
uploads/2017/07/AfrEA-Conference-Report-FIN.pdf. opment”, in Van den Berg, R, Naidoo, I and Tamondong, S (eds),
Evaluation for Agenda 2030. Providing Evidence on Progress
Bolaji-Adio, A. (2015). The Challenge of Measuring SD 16: What
and Sustainability. Exeter, UK: IDEAS.
Role for African Regional Frameworks? No. 175, May 2015, Euro-
pean Centre for Development Policy Management (ecdpm). Picciotto, R. (2013). “What is Democratic Evaluation”, in Evalu-
ation Connections, special edition on EES “Public Hearing” at
Hanberger, A. (2004). Democratic governance and evaluation.
the European Parliament: Evaluation in Democracy. Available
Paper presented at the Sixth EES (European Evaluation Society)
at http://www.czech-in.org/ees/ees-newsletter-2013-06-june-
Conference in Berlin, Germany – September 30-October 2, 2004.
special.pdf.
Evaluation, a driver for democracy and development towards Sustainable Development Goals success in Africa 17
Why Should Countries have National Evaluation Policies?
The problem
D
emand for monitoring and defined as “an assessment of planned,
evaluation (M&E) results ongoing or completed intervention
to inform decision-mak- to determine its relevance, efficiency,
ing in Tanzania is limited effectiveness, impact and sustainabil-
due to the absence of a ity” (Valadez and Bamberger, 1994) with
NEP. Indeed, despite the existence of a the intention to obtain and incorporate
National Strategy for Growth and Reduc- lessons learned into the decision-making
tion of Poverty Monitoring Framework process of policy cycle. Goldman (Goldman,
(NSGRP), there is no policy which guides et al., 2015) defines evaluation as a “system-
and requires Chief Executive Officers atic collection and objective analysis of
in the government to seek M&E data evidence on public policies, programmes,
leading to the evaluation of major and and organizations to assess issues such as
strategic development programmes. The relevance, performance, value for money,
current M&E framework in the country impact and sustainability”.
is fragmented across ministries and
ministerial department agencies (MDAs)
meaning there is neither a harmonized “ The absence of an NEP has led
evaluation framework, nor an inbuilt to ill-informed programmes and
M&E framework and evaluation culture
policy planning, in-efficiency
to demand for and use evaluations. The
absence of an NEP has led to ill-informed and in-effectiveness in policies
programmes and policy planning, in-ef- and development programme
ficiency and in-effectiveness in policies implementation and accountability”.
and development programme imple-
mentation and accountability. Moreover,
the few evaluations conducted in Tanza-
nia are done sporadically based on the Evaluations are considered as tools to
demand of funding agencies for develop- generate evidence for learning and improv-
ment programmes. ing the management of socio-economic
development programmes and policies.
There are two key important words to Furthermore, evaluation is defined as a
understand within the concept of NEP: process for objectively determining the
Evaluation and Policy. Evaluation is worth or significance of a development
a systematic, objective and impartial activity, policy or programme for its rele-
performance assessment on the effi- vance to its intended output and outcome
ciency, effectiveness and merit of policy (UNEG, 2011). Evaluations therefore, help
or programmes (OECD, 1991). It is also governments and organizations to
©:AfDB
Table 1: Data Requirement for Evaluations for SDGs vs Tanzania FYDP
1.1 By 2030, eradicate extreme 1.1.1 Proportion of population below Influence positively actors to under-
poverty for all people everywhere, the international poverty line, by take necessary information on-Evalu-
currently measured as people sex, age, employment status and ating poverty reduction programmes
living on less than $1.25 a day geographical location (urban/rural)
1.2 By 2030, reduce at least by 1.2.1 Proportion of popula- Influence positively actors to
half the proportion of men, women tion living below the national undertake necessary information
and children of all ages living poverty line, by sex and age on proportion of population below
in poverty in all its dimensions national poverty line disaggre-
according to national definitions gated by gender and age
Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved FYDP indicators
nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
2.2 By 2030, end all forms of 2.2.1 Prevalence of stunting Advocate actors to undertake neces-
malnutrition, including achieving, (height for age <-2 standard sary information on prevalence of
by 2025, the internationally agreed deviation from the median of the stunting among children under 5yrs
targets on stunting and wasting World Health Organization (WHO)
in children under 5 years of age, Child Growth Standards) among
and address the nutritional needs children under 5 years of age
of adolescent girls, pregnant and
lactating women and older persons 2.2.2 Prevalence of malnutrition Advocate actors to under-
(weight for height >+2 or <-2 stand- take necessary information
ard deviation from the median of on prevalence of malnutrition
the WHO Child Growth Standards) among children under 5yrs
among children under 5 years of age,
by type (wasting and overweight)
©:AfDB
the agenda and leads the process. In Step 1: Problem identification: Are there
other instances, Non-State Actors (NSAs) problems that require NEP in the country?
may initiate an agenda and advice the
government on the need for a policy. The Step 2: Stakeholders analysis for Tanzania’s
government buys-in the agenda and takes NEP: Who are the key stakeholders of NEP
it up into the institutional framework and in terms of use of evaluations?
engaging the wide spectrum of stakehold-
ers. Formulation of a NEP therefore, is a Step 3: Stakeholders engagement in devel-
consultative process that must include all oping NEP: How should the identified NEP
major key actors. It must embrace prin- stakeholders be engaged?
ciples and technics of all stakeholders’
analysis and engagement processes and Step 4: Prioritizing issues in the Tanzania
engage key stakeholders with interest in NEP: What issues and steps should be prior-
M&E in development for improving effi- itized in the NEP formulation process?
ciency, effectiveness and accountability.
The process for NEP formulation also Identification of stakeholders becomes a
requires the identification and engage- critical point in the process, these are the
ment of a key coordination ministry people or institutions that are likely to
for managing and aligning the policy to support, benefit or obstruct the process
national interests and priorities. of developing an NEP. Stakeholders’ anal-
ysis is a process of identifying and aligning
A NEP is a process that requires resources people and institutions along the power-in-
(capacity, time, human, and finance), terest matrix. It is an important stage in
widely accepted by stakeholders, and policy formulation that informs whom to
formalization of a process following the work with as they have interest and power,
policy making process. Mackay (1999) iden- but also who are likely to be potential
tifies Evaluation Capacity Development threats to the policy. The Power-Interest
(ECD) as a necessary step for building an matrix shows those with High and Low
NEP. The ECD requires identification of power and interest. For example, with the
key ministries, diagnosis of public sector Tanzania NEP, a stakeholders’ analysis is
environment, understanding of factors indicated in the following Figure 1.
influencing budget decision making, deter-
mining the extent of existing demand According to Mackay (1999), the identifi-
for evaluation, assessment of evaluation cation of key ministries should focus on
capabilities of the government, bilateral those ministries whose main functions
and multilateral assistance agencies and are likely to make a difference on resource
mapping out options for developing eval- allocation, policy decisions, reforms, invest-
uation capacity development. ments, public programme implementation.
For the case of Tanzania, key ministries
There are different approaches for devel- attracting evaluation are the Ministry of
oping NEP, however, best practice teaches Finance and Planning due to their role of
us that a participatory approach involving financial resource allocation, President’s
all stakeholders in government, civil soci- Office – Public Service Management
ety, NGOs, Academia and Development (PO-PSM) due to their role on human
Partners is likely to deliver all-inclusive resource (M&E) capacity development
policies. In the case of Tanzania, the major and management. The President’s Office
steps include: Regional Administration and Local
HIGH
Government Ministries, MDAs/LGAs Presedent’s Office RALG, PSM
Ministry of Finance and Planning
Planning Commission
Development Partners
TanEA
POWER
None Citizens
Lower Government (Wards, Villages),
CSOs, Academia researchers, Media
©:AfDB
2014 during the 7th African Evaluation Organizations for Professional Evalua-
Association Conference, with the objec- tions is of key importance. A preliminary
tive to increase Parliamentary oversight dialogue with stakeholders in the Tanza-
through evaluations (http://idev.afdb.org). nian Ministry of Finance and Planning as
Attending Parliamentarians committed to well as the PORALG, indicated a desire to
the establishment and strengthening of review the need for and establish an NEP
evaluation in respective countries includ- in Tanzania. This article concludes that, in
ing fostering NEP. The APNODE Tanzania general, NEPs are likely to prompt demand
chapter was launched in 2017, with 40 and use of evaluations in countries. Build-
(10.3%) members of Parliament trained on ing an evaluation culture enhances effec-
the use of M&E for oversight functions and tiveness, efficiency and accountability in
evidence-based decisions. These are key the management of development policies
actors in the NEP process as well as future and programmes. In summary:
users of the output.
❚❚ There is great consensus amongst M&E
professionals and practitioners that
Conclusion there are gaps in demand for use of
evaluations, standards, and regulating
This article has presented the process of M&E standards.
NEP formulation which requires national
dialogue and engagement of key stake- ❚❚ There is also a consensus that there are
holders. Identification of stakeholders fragmented sectoral M&E frameworks
in the government, Parliament, civil that require a unified policy.
society organizations and Voluntary
References
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Africa. Retrieved from www.pfdet.net. tion Policy and Systems: First Lessons Learned. African Evalua-
tion Journal. www.aejonline.org.
APNODE. Case Study #3. National Evaluation Policy in Uganda.
Retrieved from www.pfdet.net. Hojlund, S. (2015). Evaluation in the European Commission: For
Accountability or Learning? European Journal of Risk Regula-
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tion, Vol. 6 No. 1, Cambridge University Press.
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IAEG. (2015). Data and Indicators for Sustainable Development
Bermudez, N.A. (2015). National Evaluation Policy Framework:
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Sharpening the Results Focus of the Philippine Government.
ton D.C, USA.
Philippines Cochran, C.L and Malone, E.F (1995). Public Policy:
Perspectives and Choices, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, New IIED. (2016). Developing National Evaluation Capacities in the
York, USA. Sustainable Development Goal Era: Four Key Challenges. Policy
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TanEA. (2017). VOPEs Organizational Capacity Assess-
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tic Guide and Action Framework. ECD Working Paper Series No. Valadez, J. and Bamberger, M. (1994). Monitoring and Evaluating
6, World Bank, Washington, D.C. Social Programs in Developing Countries: A Handbook for Poli-
cymakers, Managers, and Researchers, EDI Development Studies,
Matodzi, M. A. (2015). Development of South Africa’s National
The World Bank, Washington, D.C.
Evaluation Policy and System 2011-2014. www.aejonline.org.
UNEG. (2011). National Evaluation Capacity Development: Prac-
OECD. (2010). Evaluating Development Cooperation: Summary of
tical Tips on How to Strengthen National Evaluation Systems,
Key Norms and Standards. OECD.
Washington, D.C, USA.
Introduction
D
evelopment evaluation is a commitment to, and knowledge of, eval-
is a burgeoning tool that uation: of policies, strategies, programmes
can be used as evidence and projects.
for learning and prom
oting development effec- The demand for development evaluation
tiveness and sustainable development is growing, as African governments are
in Africa. As more African countries increasingly under pressure to employ
democratize, the onus is on governments effective strategies for stability, security
to become more efficient and accounta- and economic growth as well as be account-
ble. Accountability requires that public able for national resource use. Some coun-
officials, whether elected or appointed, tries, such as Côte d’Ivoire, Benin and
respond to the demands of citizens with- Senegal, have adopted mechanisms and
out discrimination. tools that support the use of develop-
ment evaluation in the implementation
For development evaluation to make a of public policies. Despite the aforemen-
successful contribution to the imple- tioned, many African parliaments still
mentation of governance and public lack the independence, knowledge and
policy, an enabling environment needs to resources to perform their functions (IPU,
be created. Parliaments as public sector 2009). As a result, the oversight role of
institutions have the fundamental role of parliament, and its role in shaping devel-
ensuring open and free political deliber- opment strategies that reflect the concerns
ations and the representation of citizens. of the people, tend to be overlooked. This
Through their core functions of legislation, weakness is compounded by weak institu-
representation and oversight, parliaments tional or regional entities, where core build-
“sit at the centre of the web of domestic ing blocks for public sector effectiveness
accountability” (Menocal and O’Neil, 2012). and governance – effective budget systems,
They hold governments to account on planning mechanisms, core data, etc. – are
behalf of the people, ensuring that govern- lacking (Acevedo et al, 2010). As such, Afri-
ment policy and action are both efficient can parliaments have had to grapple with a
and commensurate with the needs of the lack of human capacity to fully understand
public. Parliamentarians on the other hand, the use and application of evaluation for
fulfil three crucial roles in governance. development processes.
They hold governments to account, estab-
lish a transparent and trusting relation- In response to this shortcoming, suppli-
ship between state and citizens, and enact ers of evaluation within and outside
and scrutinise government expenditures. Africa, ranging from civil society, Volun-
Fundamental to all of these responsibilities tary Organizations for Professional
©:APNODE
exchange and cooperation between the some APNODE members’ countries have
suppliers and demanders of evaluation on done, institutionalizing evaluation into
the continent. their constitution. 1
©:APNODE
Endnote
1 Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, and Benin
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Key Messages
❚❚ The current culture of evaluation in many African countries is one where evaluations
are used as tools for accountability rather than learning.
❚❚ Political cycles create instability and often slow down the momentum of institutional-
izing evaluation systems.
❚❚ There is a need for more research on what works in Evaluation Capacity Development
in order to have a greater impact on strengthening the profession of evaluation.
Introduction
T
his piece outlines four Trend 1: From donor-driven
trends in the supply and to country-owned national
demand of evaluation in evaluation systems
Africa. The first part focuses
on shifts in growing country Donor-driven evaluation has been the
ownership in the use of evaluation from norm since the dawn of this emerging
the Executive and the growing demand practice on the African continent. Draw-
and use of evaluation by parliamentarians. ing from findings of the African Evalua-
The second section captures key debates tion Database (AFRED) report that covers
amongst the producers of evaluations and supply and demand trends over ten years
how the providers of Evaluation Capacity (2005–2015) by the Centre for Research on
Development (ECD), namely universities, Evaluation, Science and Technology of
are responding to these debates through Stellenbosch University (CREST), analysis
efforts to try to standardize curricula. reveals that:
Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA 41
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
❚❚ Donors remain the primary and evaluation (M&E) in Africa from their
source for the commissioning of eval- observations of a six-nation gathering in
uations (Mouton and Wildschut, 2017) 1. 2012 2, shared lessons on what was emerging
Of the evaluations reviewed (N=2052), in the M&E landscape at a national level. In
approximately 70% were carried out their view, Uganda, Benin and South Africa
by a combination of donors (45%) and stood out at as being the leaders in estab-
academic institutions (25%); lishing national evaluation systems as a
response to growing government-driven
❚❚ Out of these evaluations where data demand, rather than donor-driven demand,
was available (N=1512), 67% were for evaluations. These three countries
authored by non-African institutions have, since 2012, taken big steps forward in
(predominantly from the West); deepening the institutional architecture
of evaluation systems. This has included:
❚❚ Significantly, who commissioned planning which programmes or policies
the evaluation – be it government or of national importance should be selected
donor – determined the types of eval- for evaluations; putting in place guide-
uation carried out and was directly lines for which methods should be used
related to the type of methods used. according to the timing of the evaluation
For example, in donor-commissioned in a programme or policy cycle; building
evaluations, the dominant methods a centralized repertoire of evaluations in
used were randomised control trials order to draw from this learning histori-
and quasi-experimental designs. By cally; and tracking improvement measures
contrast, government commissioned emerging from the evaluations findings.
evaluations focused predominantly
on mid-term reviews, implementa- In 2017, Twende Mbele3 and CLEAR-AA
tion evaluations, functional reviews hosted a dialogue on “lessons emerging
and performance audits (ibid.) in from established (Uganda, Benin and
order to review progress on policies, South Africa) and emergent National Eval-
programmes and projects. Donors, uation Systems (Ghana, Kenya)”. Some of
with a larger budget, have focused the key findings from this dialogue were:
on the end-line in terms of the
contribution of their investments in ❚❚ The importance of a central unit in
having an impact. the Presidency or Office of the Prime
Minister mandated to lead evaluation
systems. If there is political will, these
“Uganda, Benin and South Africa units/agencies have the authority to
stood out as being the leaders in deepen systems through a govern-
ment-wide approach and usually have
establishing national evaluation
the technical capacity to drive this
systems as a response to growing political will through a few designated
government-driven demand, champions.
rather than donor-driven
❚❚ The value of having an evaluation
demand, for evaluations”.
policy in advance of the establish-
ment of rules and regulations in order
to bring some definition of how the
Moving from regional to country-level system will work, and how it can allow
trends, Porter and Goldman, reflecting for impartiality in construction of the
on a snapshot of the state of monitoring system.
42 Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©: CLEAR-AA
Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA 43
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
44 Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©:CLEAR-AA
Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA 45
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
46 Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
believe that evaluation should be One of the key challenges may be the
taught as an independent discipline in dominance of training as an ECD strategy.
its own right. There is a need to develop a It is widely recognized that training is
robust, agreed-upon body of knowledge only one aspect of capacity development
that provides the foundations of M&E initiatives, and that issues in the enabling
curriculum across institutions as what environment play a critical role in ensur-
is taught in any institution is based on ing the effectiveness of evaluation prac-
epistemological preferences, and is often tice at country level. Unfortunately, too
not applicable across all contexts. The many “capacity development” strategies
absence of these kinds of standards to still focus exclusively on training, and are
guide both providers and consumers of not integrated into a broader intervention
M&E training, prevents us from reaching that incorporates changes required at
a state of functional equilibrium, where policy, institutional and structural levels.
there are enough local M&E profession- Organizations at the forefront of ECD in
als who possess the right skill-set for the Africa need to take the lead in ensuring
range of roles required in the sector. that a more integrated approach to ECD is
adopted as standard practice.
Nonetheless, more research is needed on
the actual effects of training programmes
as the evaluation discipline gradually gains Conclusion
prominence, and university programmes
focusing on evaluation do not appear to In sum, the first section of this article
be on the decline (Lavelle and Donaldson, provided an overview of various bodies
2010 in World Bank, 2014). Although both of work that point to the importance of
academic and non-academic institutions building country ownership over the
have unique roles in the ECD landscape, the systems that drive the commissioning,
CLEAR-AA evaluation capacity develop- production and use of evaluations. A
ment model now carries a more deliberate wider involvement of stakeholders in the
and focused attention on the role of insti- building of National Evaluation Systems
tutions of higher learning in the evaluation is key to this. The second section rein-
eco-system, as the role of such institutions forces the growing interest of the evalu-
in teaching and learning provides a strong ation “supply side” in coherence amongst
point of departure for this growing field in various stakeholders in the sector around
Africa. Regardless of who takes the lead in issues of professionalization and stand-
this area, we do not yet know enough about ardization (for example competencies
the impact of ECD efforts on strengthening and curriculum design). It also highlights
evaluation practice and effectively meet- the need to move beyond training towards
ing demand for robust evidence – as more more integrated evaluation capacity
research is needed in this area. development strategies to ensure greater
impact on strengthening evaluation prac-
tice on the continent.
Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA 47
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©:CLEAR-AA
Endnotes
1 CLEAR-AA commissioned CREST to construct the AFRED 2 The workshop, convened by CLEAR-AA, included govern-
database in order to promote greater scholarly research ment agencies from Benin, Burundi, Ghana, Kenya, Sene-
on evaluation on the continent. The database captures gal, South Africa and Uganda.
basic bibliographic and other related metadata on selected
3 Twende Mbele is a country-driven learning initiative
country papers, terms of reference, presentations, journal
involving Uganda, Benin, South Africa, IDEV at the African
articles, conference proceedings/papers/presentations
Development Bank and CLEAR AA.
and reports with respect to evaluations for the period
2005–2015. The geographical scope currently covers 12
sub-Saharan Anglophone countries: South Africa, Ethio-
pia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, Nigeria,
Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia.
48 Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
References
ACBF. 2017. Make no mistake: without strong institutions and Olaleye, W. 2017, “Monitoring and Evaluation Culture: Baseline
human capital, the SDGs will suffer seriously in Africa – ACBF Survey in Benin, South Africa and Uganda-DRAFT”, commis-
accessed from https://www.acbf-pact.org/media/news/make- sioned by Twende Mbele.
no-mistake-without-strong-institutions-and-human-capital-
Podems, D. 2014. Evaluator competencies and professionaliz-
sdgs-will-suffer-seriously. Accessed on 29 December 2017.
ing the field: where are we now? In The Canadian Journal of
Holvoet, N., & Renard, R. (2007). Monitoring and evaluation Program Evaluation. Vol. 28, No. 3. P. 127–136.
under the PRSP: Solid rock or quick sand? Evaluation and
Porter, S. and Goldman, I. 2013. A Growing Demand for Monitor-
Program Planning, 30, 66–81.
ing and Evaluation in Africa in the African Evaluation Journal.
King, J. A. and Podems, D. 2014. Introduction to professionaliz- V 1i1.25 (http://www.aejonline.org).
ing evaluation: a global perspective on evaluator competencies
Wilcox, Y. and King, J.A. 2014. A professional grounding and
in The Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation. Vol. 28, No. 3.
history of the development and formal use of evaluator compe-
P vii-xv.
tencies in The Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation. Vol. 28,
Lazaro, B. (2015). Comparative Study on the Institutionalisation No. 3. P 1–28.
of Evaluation in Europe and Latin America. Programme for
World Bank (IEG), 2014. The Changing Landscape of Develop-
Social Cohesion in Latin America.
ment Evaluation Training: A Rapid Review.
Mouton, J. & Wildschut, L., 2017, “Evaluation in Africa: Database
and Survey Report”, Final Report commissioned by CLEAR-AA.
Unpublished.
Trends in Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa, a View from CLEAR-AA 49
Governments in African countries are making
efforts to improve good governance, notably
by taking evidence-based decisions, but their
actions are hindered by the lack or the weak-
Strategies to Increase the Supply and
A
frica is a fast-growing African countries are making efforts to
continent, and govern- increase M&E supply and demand, but
ments have been making such efforts are not sufficient and satis-
efforts to improve good factory in most cases. Field results are
governance, for which the ambivalent1, reflecting isolated efforts in
evaluation of public sector actions is several countries.
essential. Indeed, evaluation contributes
to better measuring economic growth
and development in terms of level, pace “ Thanks to evaluation,
and efficiency. Thanks to evaluation, public servants can be held
public servants can be held accountable
accountable for their acts”.
for their acts. Despite their obvious will-
ingness to assess government actions,
many African countries lack a culture
of evaluation and, as a result, the level of One of the major challenges is the lack of
evaluation supply and demand remains evaluation courses in Africa’s academic
relatively low. system. As a result, it is difficult to get
trained in evaluation within the region.
African countries wrongly believed that Where evaluation training institutes exist,
the design of an evaluation policy or the they have a low intake capacity and do
creation of monitoring and evaluation not have enough lecturers. To curb the
(M&E) units within public services would shortage of lecturers, these institutions
be sufficient to establish a culture of eval- are obliged to hire senior evaluators from
uation. However, creating a culture of the West at a higher cost. Due to this high
evaluation requires a certain number of cost, Africa's evaluation training institutes
prerequisites. Firstly, political will, which tend to have higher training fees that are
shows that the government is aware of the unaffordable to a large segment of the
need for evaluation and may be planning to population, making it a discipline for the
engage in evaluation practice, is necessary. “well-off”. This state of affairs excludes
Secondly, African states should spare no training for equally intelligent middle class
effort to improve the quality and quantity and poor students.
of evaluation supply and demand. Thirdly,
there is a need for synergy between all Moreover, a large number of states on the
stakeholders, including the government, continent do not have evaluation train-
academia, the private sector, and devel- ing institutes. Consequently, nationals
opment partners. Improvements in the of African countries who wish to get
supply of evaluation depend on this.
trained in evaluation must avail them- Canada), but they remain very high for the
selves of options such as travelling abroad, average African.
especially to Western countries. For many
African countries, scholarships are a good The supply of evaluation in Africa is highly
means of accessing training in the West, varied and categorized. Many countries
though in a dispersed manner. Unfortu- still lack veritable evaluation training
nately, in most cases, the scholarships are facilities, and the public authorities prefer
small in number (about a hundred per public training facilities to private struc-
year). In addition, there is the thorny issue tures (technical or academic). This leads to
of the teaching language abroad. In eval- reduced capacity for independent evalua-
uation, the favourite language is English, tion training institutions, and indirectly, to
which does not give many opportunities a categorization of evaluators according to
to nationals of French – and Portuguese the place where they got trained. Accord-
speaking countries of the continent and ing to their region of training, evaluation
disadvantages them, unless they take time specialists of the continent are classified
to master the English language before into three groups:
initiating any training. Even distance
trainings, which are efficient means of 1. Evaluators trained outside
increasing the number of trained evalua- the continent;
tors and are often free of charge, are also
in English. However, the various dedicated 2. Evaluators trained in Africa; and
websites are unknown to the majority of
African people; only a handful of the priv- 3. Self-educated evaluators.
ileged have the opportunity to access the
free trainings.
Evaluators trained
outside the continent
“One of the major challenges is
the lack of evaluation courses African evaluators trained outside the
continent typically represent the elite in
in Africa’s academic system”.
the field of evaluation, as the institutions
having trained them are generally world-fa-
mous institutions. Those institutions
Some African universities have started feature among the most well-known and
offering evaluation trainings in partner- are members of international networks
ship with foreign counterparts. Such joint across several continents. African gradu-
ventures have led to the relocation of ates from such institutions are either from
trainings from the West to the benefit of rich families or are scholarship recipients.
Africa. In Francophone Africa for example, In most cases, their respective countries
training costs have plummeted owing to a regard them as references and they are
partnership between the national school particularly called on by the government/
of public administration (École nation- civil service. Training outside Africa is regu-
ale d'administration publique ENAP) in larly perceived as being synonymous with
Canada and universities in countries such the full possession of evaluation skills.
as Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire,
Guinea, Mauritania, Niger, Democratic Evaluators trained outside the continent
Republic of the Congo, Senegal and Tunisia. sometimes display a superiority complex
As a result, training costs fell by 50 per cent2 vis-à-vis their peers.
of their former value (e.g., as compared to
©:AfDB
There are more evaluators trained in Africa This category is made up of people who
than those trained outside the continent, have served as assistants to one or more
because training in the region is more evaluation experts for some time and who
accessible to African people, most of whom proclaim themselves evaluators. This cate-
cannot afford to finance their studies and gory also comprises certain graduates who
their stay outside the continent. have more or less studied, to variable levels
of depth, evaluation subjects, or who have
Several countries have negotiated a relo- gained some experience in this area.
cation of evaluation trainings which were
previously offered in the North. Such relo- Furthermore, any person working in
cation of trainings, such as the above-men- an evaluation unit of a ministry, public
tioned partnership between ENAP and agency or other governmental entity, may
universities in several francophone Afri- be considered a self-educated evaluator.
can countries, enables Africans who want They have not necessarily acquired any
to be trained in evaluation but who lack the adequate training in M&E, but they call
financial means, to obtain training in their themselves evaluators on the African
region at lower cost. continent (E. W. Mbeck, 2018).
©: Alice Kayibanda
creating training facilities with the Finally, such initiatives can have a more
necessary capacities. significant impact if development part-
ners and governments are interested in
Specialists in evaluation should regularly and support African evaluation groups
organize public events covered by the by means of technical assistance and
media, symposia and scientific workshops, subsidies.
to sensitize the public on evaluation
issues and arouse an increased interest by
policy and decision-makers.
Endnotes
1 Elie Walter Mbeck (2018), Stratégies de survie dans un 2 Calculation based on the prices applied by the same insti-
contexte de pauvreté en milieu urbain camerounais: cas tution over a 5-year period.
des marchés de rue dans la ville de Yaoundé. University of
3 Survey conducted in November-December 2017 with
Yaoundé I (UY1).
students of first year of research and some lab officers.
References
Document de Stratégies pour la Croissance et l’Emploi (2009) : Elie Walter Mbeck (2018): Stratégies de survie dans un contexte
Cadre de référence de l’action gouvernementale pour la période de pauvreté en milieu urbain camerounais : cas des marchés
2010-2020, MINEPAT, Cameroon. de rue dans la ville de Yaoundé. Thesis for a PhD in Geography,
University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon.
Elie Walter Mbeck (2012): Les marchés de nuit dans l’arron-
dissement de Yaoundé 4e. Dissertation for a Master's degree in
Geography, University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon.
©: AfDB
Key Messages
❚❚ Supply and demand for evaluation looks at the various institutions involved in moni-
toring and evaluation on the one hand, and how these institutions make a demand on
this information for the purpose of effecting policy, programming and development
decisions on the other.
❚❚ Development planning provides the platform upon which supply and demand for
evaluation can be built and enhanced due to its ability to mobilize development stake-
holders to press national governments to be accountable, transparent, results-focused,
goal-oriented, etc.
❚❚ Global and continental development initiatives that are linked to development plans
provide the platform upon which development planning processes and outcomes can
be utilized to build supply and demand for evaluation.
Introduction
D
evel o p m en t planning important that the process is driven by
refers to the strategic meas- evidence (Waterstone 1965: 107 in UNESECA
urable goals that a person, 2011: 3). Development planning processes
organization, community that yield the expected and desired devel-
or a nation intends to meet opment outcomes are built upon sound
over a stated period of time (Barker 2007). principles of accountability and transpar-
Nations or communities engage in devel- ency that are driven by a focus on evidence.
opment planning to enable them to deliver This generalization will support the
on particular objectives or development application of Monitoring and Evaluation
outcomes to a targeted beneficiary that (M&E) as instruments to guide develop-
will lead to changes in his/her condition. ment planners and provide the requisite
For the most part, development planning information that is evidence-based, thus
is an indispensable part of administer- leading to the successful attainment of
ing effective development policies and development planning outcomes.
programmes within a country. Thus, it is
Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia 61
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
In this case, development partners and not Evidently, this characterization is illustra-
the State dictated the planning processes. tive of a process devoid of evidence and
The underpinning of this argument is that points in the direction of limited scope for
there has been little demand on govern- evaluation and evidence.
ment for accountability and transparency,
62 Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
©: AfDB
Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia 63
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
64 Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia 65
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
66 Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
of sharing insights and developing capac- countries have gone ahead to establish
ity and standards on M&E (Liberia AfrEA). monitoring and evaluation frameworks
Though there is no recorded engagement for the purpose of assessing development
of LEA, the initiative to have this body as a outcomes, however the emphasis is on
member of AfrEA is a positive step in the monitoring which is regarded as the supply
right direction. Juxtaposing this initiative side of evaluation. Development planning
to development planning and the poten- can also be one of the many ways of building
tial for evaluation that is being generated, an effective demand and supply for evalu-
one can relish the fact that such potential ation. This is on the basis that it is largely
will generate and build adequate supply undertaken by governments who bear
and demand for evaluation, given the new the greatest responsibility for evidence-
dynamics in development planning that based accountability and transparency.
is tied in with countries’ commitment to Additionally, global and continental
implement global and continental devel- development trends and programs which
opment frameworks and the require- are mainstreamed in a country’s develop-
ments thereof. ment planning processes and outcomes,
emphasize the need for data integrity
Conclusion that is linked to the building of a strong
statistical foundation based on evidence.
In conclusion, it is important to restate that All of these efforts capture the fact that
evaluation is crucial to assessing devel- efforts on the continent to build strong
opment outcomes and impacts, particu- demand and supply for evaluation are
larly in developing countries. Achieving yielding positive results through the vari-
this will require the building of effective ous evaluation networks and evolving
supply and demand for evaluation. Many trends in development planning.
©: AfDB
Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia 67
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Endnotes
1 iPRSP (interm Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper) The 3 The global development agenda that replaced the MDGs.
iPRSP sets out the national socio-economic context, the Consists of 17 goals, 169 targets and 230 indicators.
preparatory process, dimensions of the emerging policy,
4 Mainstreaming Acceleration Policy Support.
capacity-building and program choices and priorities for
poverty reduction and development, as well as anticipated
implementation challenges.
References
Anonsen, C. 1969, Liberia Four Years Plan for Economic and Richardson, L. 2016, Rapid Integrated Assessment (RIA) Resil-
Social Development 1967–1970 and Actual Economist Trend. ience Exchange, Available at: https://resilience-exchange.
sphaera.world/solutions/rapid-integrated-assessment-ria,
Barkley, L. 2007, The Professional Development Plan, Available
(Accessed on January 25, 2018).
at: https://careertrend.com>JobDescriptions>Administrative-
JobDescriptions, (Accessed on: December 17, 2017). SDSN 2015, Getting Started With the Sustainable Development
Goals: A Guide for Stakeholders, Available at: http://unsdsn.org/
Basheka, B. C and Byamugisha, A. 2015, The state of Monitoring
wp-content/uploads/.../151211-getting-started-guide-FINAL-
and Evaluation (M&E) as a Discipline in Africa from infancy to
PDF-.pdf, (Viewed on October 8, 2016).
adulthood? African Journal of Public Affairs 8(3): 75–95.
Segone, M. 2008. Country-led monitoring and evaluation
CLEAR-AA, 2012, African Thought Leadership Forum on
systems: Better evidence, better Policies, better development
Evaluation and Development, Expanding Thought Leader-
results. In Segone, M. (Ed.). 2008. Bridging the Gap. New
ship in Africa, Available at: www.clear-aa.co.za/wp-content/
York: UNICEF. 17–31, Available at: https://www.unicef.org/eca/
uploads/2013/09/Bellagio-Report-Vs-Apr-14.pdf, (Accessed on:
evidence_based_policy_making.pdf, (Accessed on December
December 7, 2017).
12, 2017).
68 Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Building Effective Supply and Demand for Evaluation: The Case of Liberia 69
1 IDEV looks back on 2017
2017 was a year of adaptability
and resilience for Independent
Development Evaluation (IDEV)
at the African Development
Bank. Indeed, against all odds, 9
influential evaluation products
were delivered by IDEV to AfDB
Management and/or the Board
of Directors.
http://idev.afdb.org/en/news/idev-
holds-first-%E2%80%9Ccapitalization-
workshop%E2%80%9D-enhance-learning-
Above: APNODE Côte d’Ivoire National Chapter sensitization and training workshop, Grand Bassam,
Côte d’Ivoire, 16–17 February 2018
News in pictures 71
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
4
IDEV and Twende Mbele pave the way
for South-South Cooperation for better
Performance of African Governments
On 14 and 15 February 2018, IDEV hosted The Twende Mbele Management Committee
the quarterly Twende Mbele Management also held a lunchtime presentation for AfDB
Committee meeting in Abidjan. A Swahili staff, to sensitize them about the initiative.
expression meaning "moving forward
together", Twende Mbele is a partnership For more information about Twende
among three core countries (Benin, South Mbele, please visit the website at:
Africa and Uganda) and two regional
evaluation capacity development http://www.twendembele.org/
5
Capitalization workshop
discusses lessons learned from the Bank’s
past Agricultural Value Chains projects
IDEV and the Agriculture, Human and
Social Development Complex of the AfDB
held a half-day capitalization workshop on
Monday 26 February 2018 to discuss the main
findings of the recent IDEV project cluster
evaluation on Agricultural Value Chains
Development and to draw lessons that would
impact projects currently being designed
under the Bank’s Feed Africa Strategy.
http://idev.afdb.org/en/news/idev-cluster-evaluation-provides-
lessons-learned-afdb-next-generation-agricultural-value-chains
Above: Capitalization Workshop on the IDEV Evaluation of
AfDB’s Support to Agricultural Value Chain Development in
Africa, Abidjan, 26 February 2018
72 News in pictures
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
period, five documents framed AfDB CSPE - Cot̂ e d'Ivoire (En) - Cover.indd 3 23/01/2018 10:42
News in pictures 73
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Development Bank’s Country Strategy and Program in Nigeria from 2004 to 2016. The
AfDB Board the findings of the independent evaluation is intended to inform the next Country Strategy Paper (CSP) due in 2018, and
to contribute to both accountability and learning in the Bank in general. The evaluation
had four objectives: to provide credible evaluative evidence on the development results
of the Bank’s engagement in Nigeria; to provide credible evaluative evidence on how the
evaluation of the African Development Bank has managed its engagement in Nigeria; to identify the factors and drivers behind
good or poor performance; and to identify lessons and recommendations stemming from
the performance and management of the Bank’s support to Nigeria to inform the design
and implementation of future strategies and operations. The report draws on the working
Bank’s Country Strategy and Program papers and analysis of individual project results assessments, reviews of strategies,
evaluation-bank%E2%80%99s-country-strategy-
and-program-2004%E2%80%932016
74 News in pictures
eVALUation Matters First Quarter 2018
Upcoming Events
Event Dates Location
News in pictures 75
Past issues
eVALUation Matters
Fourth Quarter 2017
Recognizing that institutional policies, processes and practices influence performance, and
eVALUation Matters: The Problem with Development Evaluation and what to do about it
that improvements can make an institution more effective in its quest for results, IFIs are now
increasingly subject to scrutiny from the inside out.
Evaluation as a driver
of reform in IFIs
http://idev.afdb.org/en/document/evaluation-driver-reform-ifis
eVALUation Matters
A Quarterly Knowledge Publication on Development Evaluation
http://idev.afdb.org/en/document/evaluation-era-sdgs
eVALUation Matters
Second Quarter 2017
http://idev.afdb.org/en/document/comprehensive-evaluation-development-results-behind-scenes
eVALUation Matters
First Quarter 2017
Development evaluation has been around for a while now. However, the perception is that it
does not garner its expected level of influence. Why is there poor assimilation of the lessons
learned and recommendations from evaluation? Where do the problems really emanate? Is The Problem with
it from the users of evaluations, or from the evaluators? Is it from the policy or the process? Development Evaluation
and what to do about it
http://idev.afdb.org/en/document/problem-development-evaluation-and-what-do-about-it
76
Independent Development Evaluation
African Development Bank
idev.afdb.org