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Monday, 28 September 2026
8:00 am - 9:15 am ET
How can evaluation make evidence more accessible, understandable, and actionable for citizens?
Universal access to information is fundamental to transparency, accountability, meaningful participation, and informed decision-making. Yet, evaluation evidence often remains confined to technical reports, institutional platforms, and specialist audiences, limiting its potential to serve as a public good. This Future of Evaluation dialogue explored how evaluation can make evidence more accessible, understandable, and actionable for citizens.
The dialogue examined innovative approaches to knowledge translation, data visualization, storytelling, open data, digital platforms, and accessible communication, while considering how artificial intelligence and emerging technologies can broaden access without compromising accuracy, ethics, privacy, or trust. The dialogue also explored how participatory approaches can enable citizens to contribute to the generation and interpretation of evidence. Ultimately, the discussion considered how the evaluation can democratize evidence, strengthen social accountability, and empower citizens to use evidence to influence decisions that affect their lives.
In case you missed the conversation, read the 7 takeaways from the dialogue and catch up with the recording.
Moderator
Dr. Jos Vaessen is Chief Evaluation Officer and Senior Adviser at the Independent Evaluation Group at the World Bank and Head of the Global Evaluation Initiative (2025-present). Since 1998 he has been involved in evaluation research activities, first as an academic and consultant and from 2011 to 2025 in evaluation-related functions at UNESCO, the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank.
Panelists
Dr. Ram Khanal is an Evaluation and Learning Specialist with over 20 years of experience making evidence accessible, understandable, and actionable for users. He has led evaluations for UN agencies across Asia and Africa, focusing on agriculture, climate resilience, and food systems. A strong advocate for participatory evaluation, he integrates local knowledge with rigorous data to empower communities. He is the Past President of the Community of Evaluators, Nepal.
Kobasia Maseela is a Lesotho-based Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) specialist with an MPhil in Monitoring and Evaluation and 17 years of experience in humanitarian and development programming. She serves as Program Quality Manager for an international NGO and chairs EvalYouth Task Force 4, championing youth leadership, evaluation capacity strengthening, and evidence-driven development.
Dr. Sonia Chand Sandhu leads Evaluation Capacity Development at the Independent Evaluation Department of Asian Development Bank. She brings 35 years of international development cross sector infrastructure operations experience at ADB, World Bank, and the private sector. She holds a PhD from the University of Philippines, National College of Public Administration and Governance, a Masters in environmental engineering from College Park, USA.
Adrian Shikwe is an Evaluation Specialist at UNICEF, managing and supporting global evaluations on institutional effectiveness and programme performance. His work spans evaluation design, mixed-methods analysis, stakeholder engagement, quality assurance, and translating evidence into practical findings and recommendations to support organizational learning and decision-making.
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