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Read updates on the campaign activities and news from partners around the world. If you would like to receive the newsletter directly in your inbox, sign up to receive Eval4Action updates here. As an individual advocate or a partner network, if you have news or information to share with the Eval4Action community, please write to contact@eval4action.org.

By Yatin Diwakar and Harish Koidala EvalYouth Asia This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. One of EvalYouth Asia’s (EYA) stated objectives is to build the capacities of Young and Emerging Evaluators (YEEs), in line with the Asia Pacific Regional Evaluation Strategy. When EYA and Asia Pacific Evaluation Association (APEA) brainstormed on how to provide quick career development and capacity building opportunities to YEEs, we realised the need for conducting some basic training programmes that can plug the supply gap in capacity development in the region. Currently there are very few training programmes targeting YEEs who need support in navigating the complex world of the M&E profession. YEEs need support in learning the basics as there are few academic programmes in the region which teach M&E. They also need support to understand how to best develop their career in this field. When youth enter the evaluation sector from different academic backgrounds, they lack access to networks which can be leveraged to get better M&E jobs or consultancy opportunities. This background led to the organisation of a short winter school where YEEs from different countries could come together, learn a few key concepts related to M&E and share their experiences. Unfortunately, as the global COVID-19 pandemic limited travel, this plan was shelved. But this challenge was turned into an opportunity with the planning of a virtual event. Thus, the first Asia Pacific Virtual Winter School for YEEs was held from 29 to 31 March 2021 and encouraged by its success, the second winter school was held from 17 to 19 December 2021. Now, we plan to annually hold this event virtually and hope to have separate offline events as well. These winter schools provide opportunities to selected YEEs in the region to become competent, experienced, and well-networked professionals who contribute to evaluation capacity at national, regional, and international levels. Expected outcome for YEEs from the Virtual Winter School These winter schools are organised by EYA and APEA, in partnership with all the EvalYouth national chapters in the region, Sri Lanka Evaluation Association (SLEvA), Evaluation Community of India (ECOI), EvalYouth Global Network, UNFPA, and the Center for Evaluation at University of Sri Jayewardenepura with outreach support by the Asia Pacific Communications Hub. Partners supporting the Virtual Winter School The transition to an online event removed physical barriers for participants, allowing a well represented, multi-country participation at no cost. The winter schools had speakers and resource persons from around the globe. It had participants from the Pacific in the East to Africa in the West, Kyrgyzstan in the North to Australia in the South. While in itself this was a groundbreaking initiative in the region, what made it special was the way it was organised - exclusively through volunteers dedicating their time for completing each aspect professionally. The first winter school received ZERO funding, while the second received a small grant providing for a coordinator. Even in the paucity of funds, a dedicated team of organising committee members that represented various partners, volunteered to organise the winter school. Except two advisory members, all were YEEs, including the leaders and the consultant. This brought in a different energy and ethics to the group, where everyone worked together making best use of the online tools: Google Meet for weekly meetings, writing quick emails, and relying on WhatsApp for most communication. Calendar invites and shared drive spaces allowed timely collaboration enhancing partnership amongst volunteers across national borders. Similarly, WhatsApp groups of the participants promoted networking amongst the participant YEEs. The main event effectively used the meeting platform to engage the participants and provide a class-room like experience. While any online programme or even offline events nowadays will do all these things, what we found special about the Winter School was the importance given to youth, who were not necessarily well versed with the different tools or the specifics of organising an event at this scale. Still, they came together, explored and learnt together from each other and delivered a very professional event, not once, but twice in the year. The volunteers learnt nuances of online meeting platforms and tricks for effective use of collaborative tools. They prepared detailed guidelines and template documents (moderator slides, producer guides, speaker guides, selection procedure, social media plans, etc.) which now can be used for any similar event. It also provided a sense of unity to these disparate volunteers from across the countries in the Asia Pacific. The two Winter Schools provided opportunities to over 100 YEEs to hone their skills in M&E, but we believe that it offered the volunteers an even better opportunity and gave us the confidence to execute such a large, virtual, volunteer driven event successfully. Over the past year, many participants of the Winter School have now taken up responsibilities in their EvalYouth national chapters (alumni of the first Winter School were crucial in setting up the second group of EvalYouth chapters in the region), some are active with their VOPEs and all are using the knowledge gained to effectively build their careers. One might say that the two Winter Schools provided opportunities to over 100 YEEs to hone their skills in M&E, but we believe that it offered the volunteers an even better opportunity and gave us the confidence to execute such a large, virtual, volunteer driven event successfully. We hope that a new team of volunteers, comprising alumni of the winter schools and new co-leaders of the EvalYouth chapters will come together to regularly hold this annual online event and it will be complemented with some offline training programmes as well. This will contribute greatly to building M&E capacity in the region and in continuing the VOPE structures. This is imperative to strengthen the call for Evaluation for Action towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Yatin Diwakar is a PhD Scholar at the Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas at IIT Bombay. He is a co-leader of EvalYouth Asia, co-founder and co-leader of EvalYouth India and a core group member of Evaluation Community of India. He is also the co-leader of the NEPS theme of Asia Pacific regional evaluation strategy and the co-author of the status report of NEPS in the Asia Pacific. Yatin is also working with the Government of India in the preparation of the National Evaluation Policy Framework. Follow Yatin on Twitter. Harish Koidala is pursuing Masters in Public Policy from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. He is the Mission Manager (Partnerships) with EvalYouth India and an active member of Evaluation Community of India. Harish was part of the team that organised the first Asia Pacific Winter school for young and emerging evaluators and the first ever Indian Evaluation Case Competition – 2021. Contact Harish via harishkoilada@gmail.com.

By Nazir Ul Haq Founding co-chair, EvalYouth Pakistan This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. On 23 March 2022, EvalYouth Pakistan marked its first anniversary with an event celebrating youth in evaluation in Pakistan. The event highlighted the experiences and learnings of Young and Emerging Evaluators (YEEs) from across Pakistan while conducting culturally responsive evaluations in indigenous and local communities. The event received great appreciation from participants who came from different parts of the world. The event also signified and encompassed the core values and guiding principles that EvalYouth Pakistan has set for itself in its strategy including diversity and inclusion, participation, equity, and innovation. As a founding co-chair of EvalYouth Pakistan, I am writing this reflective piece to highlight some of the good practices that worked for us and the important lessons that we learned along the way. 1. Finding your eval mates: While planning to establish a new EvalYouth national or regional chapter, you have to find people who share the same passion and are willing to join hands. But it is not always easy. When we set out, we learned from the IOCE’s website that there is a national VOPE in Pakistan, Pakistan Evaluation Association (PEA). We reached out to the president of PEA and as expected, we received wonderful support and encouragement and got linked with the young members of PEA. We also reached out to a group of young evaluators through the EvalYouth Asia regional chapter who immediately agreed to join hands for the initiative. And soon we were able to form a team of committed young evaluators who dedicated their time and energies and spearheaded the establishment of EvalYouth Pakistan. 2. Capitalizing on existing resources, knowledge and experiences: When we were planning for EvalYouth Pakistan, EvalYouth chapters in Afghanistan and India had just been launched with the support of EvalYouth Asia. The regional chapter had also documented the process that was followed in establishing the new chapters in the region. EvalYouth Asia not only made those important documents available to us, but its co-leaders also shared their experiences and lessons in establishing the new chapters in their own countries. This knowledge turned out to be invaluable for us as we established EvalYouth Pakistan. 3. Socializing the initiative: Although a lot of work is being done by EvalYouth Global Network, and the different regional and national chapters, the idea of EvalYouth national chapters is still not well known in many developing countries. So when starting out, it is essential to explain it well to get your eval mates as well as potential supporters on board. Realizing this important need, we had developed a brief concept note explaining the main objectives of establishing the EvalYouth chapter in Pakistan, what to expect from it and how it will work. While developing the concept note, we took guidance from EvalYouth Global background document. With the concept note shared widely in our networks, we were able to get onboard truly interested and passionate YEEs who have become an integral part of the chapter. 4. Make the launch big: Based on our experience we learned that a proper launch is a big advocacy opportunity. We organized a virtual launch event supported by PEA, with participation of some of the bigwigs in the field of evaluation from across the globe and key public and private sector stakeholders in Pakistan. The event was streamed live on our social media pages and was published in a prominent newspaper as well, attracting a sizable audience and spreading awareness about the initiative. 5. Developing a shared purpose: The new chapter usually attracts young and interested people who are looking for a reliable professional community and a meaningful platform for learning, networking, and exchange. They also come with some expectations. Therefore, it is essential to develop a shared purpose based on their needs and expectations and by considering what the chapter can deliver as a voluntary professional network. Before our official launch, we developed a strategy document in consultation with YEEs and PEA, and based on the review of the EvalYouth Global Strategy. The strategy highlights the shared purpose of EvalYouth Pakistan including its vision, mission, strategic goals, and key action areas. This also serves to drive the commitment of its members. Diversity and inclusion are key to the success of the new chapter, just as for any other initiative. There should be intentional efforts to ensure diversity and inclusion in the chapter’s governance, management as well as in its outreach efforts. 6. Diversity and inclusivity: Diversity and inclusion are key to the success of the new chapter, just as for any other initiative. There should be intentional efforts to ensure diversity and inclusion in the chapter’s governance, management as well as in its outreach efforts. Considering the diversity of the population in Pakistan, EvalYouth Pakistan’s governance and management strategy has been structured in a way that ensures YEEs belonging to each province have a seat in the Management Group. The chapter’s Executive Committee consists of one male and one female co-chair who are selected through self-nomination, then shortlisted by an independent committee and virtual voting, facilitated by PEA. Task forces have been developed by EvalYouth Pakistan around its four key action areas on capacity strengthening, engagement, networking, and institutional strengthening. The leadership of the task forces was determined through self-nominations, ensuring equal representation for each gender. The increased diversity and inclusion within EvalYouth Pakistan has ensured equitable representation and also contributed to more creative thinking within the chapter. 7. Promoting accessibility: Being a member of an EvalYouth chapter provides opportunities for learning, engagement, and networking. The EvalYouth chapters are also recognized as representatives’ bodies of YEEs by some of the key players in evaluation. In our first year, several of our members were able to avail scholarship opportunities to attend training by Encompass Learning Center and the Asia Pacific Winter School. Members also received bursaries to attend the Asia Pacific Evaluation Association (APEA) conferences and Evalfest. Several members were also invited to facilitate and moderate sessions in P2p+ Career Advisory and webinars organized by the Sri Lankan Evaluation Association (SLEVA) and APEA. To ensure that more YEEs get access to such opportunities, membership to the EvalYouth chapter should be widely promoted. For this purpose, EvalYouth Pakistan has a dedicated Task Force responsible for expanding the network and engaging those who join the chapter. Although it was a bit tough to find partners during the initial months, eventually partnerships did form, as EvalYouth Chapters offer such a huge potential for promoting evaluation. 8. Developing partnerships: Building partnerships with relevant organizations helps to achieve strategic objectives of the chapter. EvalYouth chapters in different regions and countries have been able to develop partnerships with different organizations and enjoy their institutional support including with UN agencies. EvalYouth Pakistan has developed a partnership strategy outlining the key priorities for partnerships and has identified potential partners. Although it was a bit tough to find partners during the initial months, eventually partnerships did form, as EvalYouth Chapters offer such a huge potential for promoting evaluation. EvalYouth Pakistan officially welcomed UNICEF Pakistan as its first partner two weeks before its first anniversary. 9. Fostering networking: Networking is of great value to a new EvalYouth Chapter. We have been encouraging our members to participate in various evaluation networks and initiatives in the region and across the globe. EvalYouth Pakistan’s members serve in EvalYouth Global, EvalYouth Asia, EVALSDGs network, APEA, and P2p+ Career Advisory Initiative. EvalYouth Pakistan’s members serve as volunteers, organizers, moderators, and facilitators in events and activities organized by other EvalYouth chapters and VOPEs. Based on these engagements and networks, they gain experience and bring their learning back to EvalYouth Pakistan which has proved to be valuable for us. With the new chapter, we have to be patient and focus our energies because the first year of the EvalYouth Chapter is usually the year of giving! 10. From shared purpose to shared responsibility: Working for EvalYouth Pakistan so far and serving as its first co-chair has been truly rewarding for me. I have learned a lot, met some amazing people, and made great friends. But I have also found it a bit challenging at times to balance my role as a co-chair together with my job, personal life, and other voluntary work. With the new chapter, we have to be patient and focus our energies because the first year of the EvalYouth Chapter is usually the year of giving! A few committed young people have to keep it running while developing a strong foundation for its continuity and sustainability. With a strong foundation in place, there should be intentional efforts to empower more leaders by delegating responsibilities, and by engaging more volunteers. I believe that in the first year of EvalYouth Pakistan, we have been able to create a shared purpose within the network and have set a strong foundation with a well-defined structure, roles and responsibilities, and a strategic framework. From now onwards, our focus will be on fostering shared responsibility. Nazir Ul Haq is an experienced planning, monitoring, evaluation, and learning (PMEL) professional with around eight years of diverse experience working in Pakistan and in Southeast Asia. As a PMEL expert, Nazir has worked on various development themes including health equity, humanitarian assistance, economic development, governance, regional cooperation, agricultural development, and education. He is co-chair of EvalYouth Pakistan, a co-leader in EvalYouth Asia, and a member of the Pakistan Evaluation Association, Asia Pacific Evaluation Association and EVALSDGs group. Follow Nazir on Twitter and contact him via nhaqcl@gmail.com.

By Shelby Corley Co-founder, Three Hive Consulting and Eval Academy This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. It was a pleasure to be invited to contribute a blog about using evaluation as an accelerator to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs.) “This blog will write itself,” I told myself smugly. But then I thought more about the topic and came to a somewhat guilty admission: I never reference the SDGs in my work as an evaluator. My work is based almost entirely in western Canada, and my clients rarely, if ever, connect their efforts to the SDGs. They do, however, set goals and work to end poverty, improve health and well-being, and advance gender equality in the regions they serve. My thoughts here are based on my work as an evaluation consultant and as an evaluation capacity builder and are grounded in the experiences that I have had in my career and life to this point. I have arrived in evaluation as a career unintentionally, but appropriately. When I see governments and organizations sharing their goals, I cannot help but question – how will you know when you get there? Where did that goal come from? Are those strategies really leading you to achieve that goal? To me, these are obvious questions to ask, but I am regularly surprised at how infrequently or poorly they are addressed. What if we didn’t evaluate? When I kick off a new evaluation project or provide evaluation training, I like to explore the value of evaluation by asking people to imagine it didn’t exist. Imagine you didn’t reflect on progress and process. Imagine you had no data to guide decisions. How would you know if you’re doing the right things, the right way, at the right time, with the right people? You simply wouldn’t. Your decisions would be made on best guesses and recent memories of standout experiences. Without evaluation, we obviously would not know if we have achieved the SDGs, or if we are making progress toward them. Evaluation encourages reflection Evaluation makes us consider our current state and ask ourselves if that’s what we want. If we then want to do better, evaluation helps us understand how. By asking questions about quality, safety, efficiency, and equity, it helps us identify high-value activities that advance our goals, or see where we may be missing opportunities to do better. When we evaluate, we can learn from our history and better position ourselves to create the future we want for the world. It is incumbent on evaluators to help those around us understand the great value that comes with systematic reflection on progress and process. Evaluators need to both talk the talk and walk the talk. Problem: Evaluation isn’t well understood Evaluators will know what it’s like to have a new acquaintance not understand your job. Many people have experienced evaluation as an onerous task, if at all. Our field is not well known, and our value is not well understood. It is incumbent on evaluators to help those around us understand the great value that comes with systematic reflection on progress and process. Evaluators need to both talk the talk and walk the talk. We need strong voices to amplify our message across all levels of systems, all around the world. Opportunity: Evaluation can be more accessible Sometimes, evaluation is very hard. But many aspects of evaluation are relatively straightforward. The basic principle of why we evaluate – to learn and do better — is easy to understand. And many of the tasks involved are entirely doable by non-evaluators. Evaluation can’t be left solely to expensive consultants. Organizational leaders, programme managers and operational staff need to understand the value of evaluation and be empowered to contribute. Evaluation training, once a niche offering, is now easily accessible for those with internet access. Entry-level information about evaluation is abundant, including on our Eval Academy website. It has never been easier for anyone to learn about evaluation and integrate simple practices into their work. So how can evaluation help accelerate the SDGs? Evaluation can help accelerate the SDGs by being everywhere, all the time. Evaluation needs to grow and be prioritized. Evaluation tasks need to be embedded in everyone’s roles and throughout the entire life of a programme. The principles of reflection and improvement that are so fundamental to evaluation can permeate the world and accelerate the SDGs when evaluation tasks are understood and undertaken by everyone who designs and runs programmes and when policy makers understand the imperative to evaluate the world their policies create. For those of us whose work does not explicitly reference the SDGs, we can take opportunities to point out how the initiatives we support are aligned with the SDGs during our planning discussion and in our reporting. Remember that evaluators have a unique role in which we are often able to encourage our clients to reflect, to share new ideas and suggest different ways of thinking about initiatives—why not help our clients to see how their work relates to the SDGs? Calls to action Policy and grant makers: prioritize effective evaluation and strategic learning. Build in meaningful evaluation requirements so you know if your efforts are helping to achieve goals. Managers: train your staff. Empower them to learn about evaluation and integrate it into their work, even through small actions. Evaluators: talk about evaluation. Be great at what you do and demonstrate the value of your craft. Help your friends and colleagues learn about evaluation. How I Walk the Talk Having witnessed the need to grow awareness of evaluation and capacity to undertake it, my partner and I founded Eval Academy. We believe that evaluation has the power to uncover insights, change behaviours and transform how organizations and systems work – so everyone should evaluate! At Eval Academy, our team shares our experience of evaluation in relatively plain language, offering an introduction to evaluation for those who are unfamiliar with it, and more intermediate-level explorations of evaluation topics for those with some experience. With trustworthy articles and useful resource downloads, we are providing thousands of monthly visitors a simple way to learn about evaluation and integrate it into their work. In this way, Eval Academy is empowering people to accelerate their progress toward their goals – SDGs included. Shelby Corley is CEO of Three Hive Consulting, an evaluation consultancy, and Eval Academy, a website dedicated to building evaluation capacity. Shelby leads a small team of skilled and thoughtful evaluators who serve Canadian clients in the non-profit and healthcare sectors. Her evaluation and research experience includes primary health care, mental health and addictions, health innovation and virtual care, children and youth, housing and homelessness, and immigrant and refugee-serving organizations. Follow Sheldy on Twitter and LinkedIn.

How do we harness the potential of 1.21 billion young people in evaluation? It begins by recognizing, including, committing and investing in Youth in Evaluation. If you are part of the global evaluation community in any way, here are 6 ways you can champion Youth in Evaluation: 1. Adopt the Youth in Evaluation manifesto About 100 organizations and 300 people have already signed the manifesto. If you have not done so, sign the manifesto available in six languages here. Mobilize your partners and other organizations to sign it as well. Customize and use this email template to support this mobilization. 2. Implement your commitment Whether you are an international agency, government organization, a VOPE, academic institution, youth organization, private sector institution or an NGO, take an active role in delivering your commitment to Youth in Evaluation. Start by making a plan together with your local or regional EvalYouth chapter. Launch Youth in Evaluation in your country or region in partnership with other actors. 3. Join the co-creation of standards on meaningful engagement of youth in evaluation To support the implementation of the manifesto, standards on enhancing meaningful youth engagement in evaluation are being co-created for different stakeholder groups such as international agencies, governments, VOPEs, academia, youth organizations, private sector and NGOs. Join the relevant task force and make a contribution to developing the standards for your stakeholder group. Write to contact@eval4action.org to express your interest. 4. Support Youth in Evaluation communication and outreach Regularly spread the word on your digital channels using the communication assets available here. This includes social media materials, FAQ sheet, branding and translation guides. Use relevant international, regional and national advocacy days to advance the importance of youth in evaluation. Find the social media pack for International Youth Day here. 5. Spotlight the Youth in Evaluation logo and badge In your communications, in conferences and meetings, on your website, on your social channels, in your email signature, use the Youth in Evaluation logo to demonstrate your support and commitment. Find all logo related resources here, including the logo in seven languages. If you have signed the manifesto, place the received Champion badge on all your communications. 6. Break the language barrier To spread the word on Youth in Evaluation far and wide, take the lead in translating the Youth in Evaluation manifesto and logo in local, national and regional languages. To begin, have a look at this logo translation guide. To translate the manifesto in your language, reach out to contact@eval4action.org. Do you have other ideas to champion Youth in Evaluation? We invite you to join this growing movement.

By Dr Rashmi Agrawal Towards the SDGs In the keynote address delivered during EvalFest 2020, organized by the Evaluation Community of India (ECOI), Marco Segone, Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office, indicated that if the current trends were any evidence to go by, attaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) would take several decades beyond 2030. That was even before COVID-19 arrived on the scene. In April 2020, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), a UN global initiative, conducted a survey on the progress made and the major challenges faced in implementing the SDGs, covering 715 respondents from 104 countries in the SDG community. Respondents indicated that even before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was not on track to achieve these goals. Two-thirds of the community believed that their country would only achieve up to half of the goals. Only 16 per cent of respondents believed that their country was on track.[1] These two pieces of evidence – one based on data and the other anecdotal – are enough to alert the global community that a significantly major push (perhaps superhuman) is necessary to reach anywhere close to the goals by 2030. Even before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was not on track to achieve these goals. COVID-19 and the SDGs The COVID-19 pandemic appears to be throwing all development into disarray and exposing the inadequacies of all public health systems in more economically developed and developing countries alike. The effects of the pandemic has harmed millions of lives and livelihoods. It may take a few years for countries to recover from the economic and health crisis inflicted by the pandemic. To use the language of a cardinal principle of SDGs, those who were left behind earlier have been pushed back even further and those who had enjoyed a modicum of fruits of development have also been pushed into the class of left behind, raising the amount of corrective action required to get back on track considerably. Examples of the negative impact are not restricted to just SDG 8 related to employment and decent work but to many other SDGs addressing hunger, poverty, well being among other areas (SDGs 1, 2, 3, 4). Online education has replaced normal education methods. The major disadvantage of this trend is the exclusion of students who do not have access to the necessary technological equipment and/or the internet. An online survey conducted by the author and team in April 2020 (542 respondents from 58 countries) showed that continued lockdowns and other restrictions imposed raised negative feelings such as stress, anxiety and fear among the people (SDG 3) and even behaviour patterns had changed due to continued disconnect with the outside world[2]. Those who were left behind earlier have been pushed back even further and those who had enjoyed a modicum of fruits of development have also been pushed into the class of left behind, raising the amount of corrective action required to get back on track considerably. COVID-19 and the evaluation practice Evaluation itself has been affected by the pandemic. First, economic impact and budget constraints have affected the scope for evaluations. Some evaluations have been cancelled or postponed. Second, with drastic restrictions imposed upon some of the established evidence-gathering procedures such as face-to-face individual and group interviews, evaluation practice has been forced to modify its methods. Participatory methods such as Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and the like, which demand personal proximity, are not possible. The evaluation profession is no doubt resilient enough to adapt its techniques to these restrictions. However, alternative techniques have their own limitations. For example, in countries where internet communication is not very widespread, online surveys do not reach all, particularly the most deprived sections. The examples are only indicative. However, these set a limit on knowing what is happening to those left behind. The evaluation profession is no doubt resilient enough to adapt its techniques to these restrictions. Eval4Action campaign The Eval4Action campaign has been conceived under these circumstances. The campaign intends to promote influential evaluations contributing to acceleration of results through evidence-based policies and programmes. A legitimate question, however, is how evaluation can by itself improve the progress towards the SDGs? This requires a) carrying out quality evaluations to produce quality evidence to indicate what policies and programmes work, and, b) convincing the policy-makers to plough this evidence into reshaping policies and programmes. The latter is more difficult to achieve. This is why the campaign is mobilizing the global evaluation community to come together to advocate for influential evaluation at all levels. Role of evaluators Evaluative evidence is required to assess the impact of the pandemic on the lives and livelihoods of the population and interventions made by the governments to tackle the situation. In these circumstances, the role of evaluators has increased many folds to generate quality evidence and guide the assessment of changed priorities and impacts by inventing new methodologies. Technological advances in information gathering, processing and dissemination need to be harnessed for more efficient evaluations, but at the same time, it should be recognized that such methods could be biased due to exclusion and may infringe individual privacies. The role of evaluators has increased many folds to generate quality evidence and guide the assessment of changed priorities and impacts by inventing new methodologies. How can VOPEs contribute? While developing evaluation capacities at all levels and professionalizing evaluation would raise the evaluation standards, leading to evaluations of high quality and utility, advocacy is required to ensure policy-makers use the evidence to frame policies and programmes. Coordination, synergies and constant dialogue between evaluators and other stakeholders like decision makers, legislators, media and the civil society at large are pre-requisites. VOPEs (Voluntary Organizations for Professional Evaluation) have an important role in all the areas - evaluation capacity building, maintaining professional standards, advocacy for use of evidence and so on. VOPEs have an important role in all the areas - evaluation capacity building, maintaining professional standards, advocacy for use of evidence. Takeaway This is the right time for some introspection on the time span set for the global development agenda. We need to re-look at the global agenda and reprioritize the SDGs to address the total well being of people – both material and mental. The COVID-19 pandemic could leave lasting imprints on the attitudes of people. While all the SDGs are important, emphasis on fewer goals related to poverty, hunger, health and inclusivity (SDGs 1, 2, 3 and 4) with fewer targets need to be considered. The role of evaluators is immense in the present scenario, both in creating demand and supply for evaluations and innovating appropriate techniques for evaluations. [1] Sachs, J., Schmidt-Traub, G., Kroll, C., Lafortune, G., Fuller, G., Woelm, F. 2020. The Sustainable Development Goals and COVID-19. Sustainable Development Report 2020. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://sdgindex.org/reports/sustainable-development-report-2020/ [2] Agrawal R., Rama Rao D., Rao B., Kalumgampitiya A., Rao S., Sivaramane N. 2020. Behaviours and coping strategies during COVID 19 - A Study on Impacts. https://krishisamhitha.net/covid19_report/ Dr Rashmi Agrawal is an IPDET alumni, retired as Director from Government of India, now working as an independent M&E consultant with various national and international organizations. She is a Core Group member of Evaluation Community of India (ECOI), Ex Board member of IDEAS and a member of EvalGender+. Contact Dr Rashmi Agrawal on Twitter and at rashmi.agrawal56@gmail.com.

By Gabriela Rentería Flores Chair, EvalYouth Global Network The year 2020 was marked by a swift departure from all paradigms of normal life; the status quo no longer exists. With alarming speed, COVID-19 deepened existing global challenges and overturned hard-won gains on global development. Through a multidimensional domino effect, it has evidenced deep-rooted vulnerabilities everywhere, even in the more developed countries. No region in the world has been exempt from the global economic shock nor the calamitous effects in every aspect of human life. These effects have been particularly strong on the young, women and other groups under already precarious conditions. One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is still facing its effects. The COVID-19 crisis was initially a health crisis but has spread its effects to all other dimensions of development. Just for 2021, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates a global growth of 6.5 percentage points lower than the pre-COVID-19 projections of January 2019, directly affecting low-income households. This has not only pushed back millions into poverty, but it also imperilled the significant progress made in reducing extreme poverty in the world since the 1990s. [1] The International Labour Organization estimates that as of April 2020, almost 1.6 billion informal workers faced a 60 per cent decline in earnings, with women over-represented in the most hard-hit sectors. [2] For young people, the risks in the fields of education, employment, mental health and disposable income are increasing exponentially. These consequences are not only affecting them in the present, but will have long-lasting effects on their development, and after all, will have an impact on humanity as a whole. Almost every Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) has been affected by the pandemic. Hard-fought gains are under threat. Unquestionably, this pandemic has become the biggest challenge that the modern world and international development has ever faced; and, indeed, the uncertainty not only keeps surrounding our livelihoods, our social interactions, and our lives, but it will permanently modify and transform them. Under these meaningful and challenging times, dreaming for a better future is not only possible but desirable, and evaluating for a better future should no longer be an aspirational statement but an opportunity to take action for influential evaluation, to work even harder than originally planned. This pandemic has presented enormous challenges, but as young evaluators, we need to build from this crisis, collect the lessons learned, and transform them into knowledge that contributes to solutions for a better society. One that genuinely leaves no one behind. Dreaming for a better future is not only possible but desirable, and evaluating for a better future should no longer be an aspirational statement but an opportunity to take action for influential evaluation, to work even harder than originally planned. The attempts to respond to the current crisis need to consider the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as a roadmap to development. This will help us to build a better world, providing a stable and prosperous life for every person and ensuring also the health of the planet. Yet, this challenge cannot be dealt with in isolation, but with partnerships. Integrated solutions can lead us to build a greener and more inclusive future that can help every country to meet the SDGs. A response to the pandemic is not only about amending inequalities, but also about building a better and resilient world, for everyone, everywhere. The 2030 Agenda calls for breaking down silos, so we must work together and redouble our commitment and efforts to ensure that better practices and more evidence are utilized in subnational and national plans, as well as in international assistance. We have the historic opportunity to reach the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and we can do it by using evidence, by accelerating influential evaluation. We need to promote evaluation that makes a difference, that has a positive impact on the lives of people and that includes youth. Going out of this trap and achieving the SDGs by 2030 requires a generational commitment. While it is the responsibility of everyone to act towards the achievement of the SDGs, young and emerging evaluators (YEEs) should take the lead and contribute to sustainable and equitable development by creating innovative ways of approaching evaluation, building new partnerships, and advocating for a sustainable and resilient world. We need to promote evaluation that makes a difference, that has a positive impact on the lives of people and that includes youth. Young and emerging evaluators normally face the common challenge of exclusion and under-representation in the evaluation community and many other organizations. Now VOPEs, international organizations and governments, need to include youth as actors of social change to build a resilient and better future. Since its establishment, EvalYouth has been about actions and transformational change. Partnering with UNFPA and the Global Parliamentarians Forum in the Eval4Action campaign has enriched and complemented our vision. Eval4Action is about transformational change, actions, focusing on evaluation as a critical tool to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs. Furthermore, it is about opening opportunities, in particular to YEEs to participate and lead the articulation of regional evaluation action plans, for our ideas to be heard. Now it is time to seize these opportunities and demonstrate our ability to make a change, to go beyond commitments, to accelerate influential evaluation. Now it is time to seize these opportunities and demonstrate our ability to make a change, to go beyond commitments, to accelerate influential evaluation. I envision reaching 2030 where influential evaluation is widespread around the world to drive positive change, where YEEs are effective drivers of social change, where we can learn lessons from what has been done and integrate them into real action plans. A 2030 where we can commit again as humanity on new and more challenging SDGs, considering youth as key informants, advisors, and decision-makers. None of this will be possible without everyone's commitment and actions. [1] International Monetary Fund, 2020. World Economic Outlook Update. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2020/06/24/WEOUpdateJune2020 [2] International Labour Organization, 2020. https://www.ilo.org/globa l/topics/employment-promotion/informal-economy/publications/WCMS_743523/lang--en/index.htm Gabriela Rentería Flores is the Chair of EvalYouth Global Network and an Independent Monitoring & Evaluation Consultant. She holds a Bachelors degree in Economics and a Masters degree in Development Economics. She has worked in M&E projects for GIZ, UNDP, CONEVAL and subnational governments in Mexico. Gabriela is a member of the National Academy of Evaluators of Mexico (ACEVAL), EvalGenderMx and EvalYouth LAC. Follow Gabriela on Twitter and LinkedIn.

By Krithika Rajagopalan and Shagun Sabarwal CLEAR South Asia The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing development problems such as unemployment, poverty, and inequality, underscoring the need for carefully framing policies using data and evidence that is generated through reliable and strong monitoring & evaluation (M&E) systems. Many governments in low- and middle- income countries collect data but may not use it well. There is an opportunity to use emerging technologies and systems based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to improve real-time decision-making. For technological innovations to be truly useful in driving effective decisions which affect millions of people, we need to improve the data quality, reliability of information generated and system readiness to absorb these technologies. The importance of decisions based on scientific evidence and facts cannot be understated amid the rising spread of misinformation which has also complicated the war against the pandemic. At the level of policymaking, one of the ways to ensure this is through M&E data that is generated in-house or by third-party evaluators. However, low quality data or the absence of the value of M&E data can lead to decisions taken which may be ineffective or in some cases, counter-productive. Studies suggest that even well-drafted programmes that appear to work well based on data collected on administrative indicators, can fail to work in practice. For technological innovations to be truly useful in driving effective decisions which affect millions of people, we need to improve the data quality, reliability of information generated and system readiness to absorb these technologies. Some of the common barriers to good quality data include system-level challenges such as inconsistency in the mode of data collection across various data generating units, and man-made errors at the data collection and data entry stages. Lack of proper integration of these databases might create duplicates, and might also lead to the publication of a combined version of data collected by different units at different points in time. This is problematic because such data may not be entirely representative. The underlying economic, political and social institutions also need to be conducive to collect good quality data. It is important for government departments to lay down comprehensive data collection protocols to collect quality data on policy processes and outcomes, secure the data that is collected, and institute an effective monitoring process to ensure adherence to protocol. Such protocols can enable consistency and resilience in the face of changes in the political system or staff within government departments. In our work at the CLEAR South Asia Center, which is hosted at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) South Asia, we engage in many such capacity building and advisory services with government partners to help them use quality evidence to inform decisions. We also conduct workshops on helping stakeholders improve data quality through content such as conducting data quality checks and the design of robust data collection systems. It is important for government departments to lay down comprehensive data collection protocols to collect quality data on policy processes and outcomes, secure the data that is collected, and institute an effective monitoring process to ensure adherence to protocol. What did this work look like during the pandemic? There has been an increased prevalence of remote data collection over the last year. Researcher interest in methods such as Computer Assisted Telephonic Interviews (CATI), Interactive Voice Response Systems (IVRs), and self-reported surveys sent to respondents through SMS or the internet have seen a substantial increase globally. Some prerequisites for weaving them at a large scale into existing systems include digital literacy of respondents and survey staff, increased mobile-use penetration in a region, and internet and signal prevalence. Investing in these basics can help continue the propagation of low-cost remote data collection while ensuring quality data. Predictive analysis using AI is another recent innovation, which seeks to use large datasets from previous economic events to predict future events, and incorporates various interlinked factors affecting the outcome of interest. Poor quality data will constrain the ability to observe patterns in such a relationship. The foundation for this must be built on a deep understanding of the geographical region and context on which the data collection and analysis is centred, and requires personnel trained in machine learning[1]. New methods also include geospatial analysis in policy areas such as urban planning and transportation planning, which require the availability of internet facilities and accurate GIS mapping. Climate change is an emerging policy area that can benefit from the geospatial analysis[2] for new policy recommendations. The true potential for technological advancement in M&E can be harnessed only with a conducive infrastructure and enabling environment. Maintaining security to avoid misuse of the published data and documentation is important as governments, donors, and researchers use technology for activities of varying levels of complexity. The many threats to the security of administrative and government data can range from intentional breaches into government platforms or authorised persons/departments unintentionally exposing information to the public due to lack of adequate skills or awareness such as intentional unauthorised access by hackers, unintentional breach of security (lax security protocols by the authorised user) and authorised users illegally using data for unauthorised purposes. To avoid such breach of security, existing systems can be empowered using reliable data storage mechanisms such as encrypted hard disks, encrypted data transfer processes, and restrictions on access networks. The true potential for technological advancement in M&E can be harnessed only with a conducive infrastructure and enabling environment. Building capacity on the use of such technology is one vital component that we address at CLEAR South Asia through training courses on digital modes of data collection and measurement. The current crisis has highlighted the need to revisit these systems to ensure that innovations actually translate into actionable policies. We have a long way before M&E is used as effectively as possible to inform important decisions and improve development outcomes. The current crisis has highlighted the need to revisit these systems to ensure that innovations actually translate into actionable policies. As technological innovations abound, the focus should be on supporting currently fragmented M&E systems to move from data generation towards data use, and work towards improving their readiness to absorb technology. [1] A type of computer programme that performs specific tasks such as data cleaning and analysis based on information inputted by users. [2] Geospatial Information is a digital replication of the physical world in which all human, economic and environmental activity takes place. Analysing this information to guide decisions in termed as geospatial analysis. Krithika Rajagopalan is a Senior Training Associate at CLEAR South Asia and J-PAL South Asia. She supports the team in partnership development with governments, civil society organisations, donors and multilateral organizations. Follow Krithika on Twitter. Shagun Sabarwal is the Director of CLEAR South Asia and the Director of Policy, Training, and Communications at J-PAL South Asia. She promotes the Center’s mission to strengthen the monitoring, evaluation, learning systems, and data use of decision-makers in the region through capacity building and advisory services. Follow Shagun on Twitter.

By Thomas Archibald Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education, Virginia Tech To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and recover from the devastating impacts of COVID-19, business as usual is unacceptable. Paradigmatic transformations are needed as civil society, industry, and governments alike rethink how they work and how they define success in relation to social, economic, and ecological impacts. In parallel, conventional evaluation approaches are inadequate. Reductionist, linear, technical-rationalistic modes of thinking and evaluating are ill-equipped to face the complex dynamic challenges confronting us. As Michael Quinn Patton and the Blue Marble Evaluation (BME) community suggest, evaluating transformation requires transforming evaluation. One way to foster transformation in evaluation is to intentionally and explicitly focus on critical and evaluative thinking skills. Specifically, evaluative thinking can broaden recognition of evaluation as a powerful tool to improve public accountability and good governance, while simultaneously bolstering evaluation systems and capacities among evaluators and programme implementors alike. Evaluating transformation requires transforming evaluation. The needed transformations of evaluation One clarion call about transformation is from the BME approach, with its three overarching principles: global thinking, Anthropocene[1] as context and transformative engagement. The premise of the third principle is that, “Global, anthropogenic problems are so severe, threatening the future sustainability of the planet and humanity, that major and rapid systems transformations are needed.”[2] Another call for transformation is from Thomas Schwandt[3], reflected on thoughtfully by Zenda Ofir.[4] Against the backdrop and predominance of ‘normal evaluation,’ which is “wedded to notions of scientific rationality, social progress, effectiveness and efficiency in social programming, and the broad ideology of modernization,” post-normal evaluation draws on: Resilience thinking as a rationality of governing The return of politics to the people A recovery of practical reasoning Co-production to redefine the relationship between professionals and citizens, and Ethical accountability. Yet another call for transformation is the call for equitable evaluation, as expressed via the principles of the Equitable Evaluation Initiative, including that evaluation should be in service of equity, should be multiculturally valid and orientated toward participant ownership, and should answer critical questions about the historical and structural entanglements of societal conditions and the strategies designed to address them. One final call for transformation with clear implications for the evaluation of the SDGs is the movement towards decolonizing evaluation—which requires that evaluation itself be decolonized while simultaneously acting as a decolonizing force in society. This topic is discussed beautifully in a Twende Mbele webinar featuring Candice Morkel, Mjiba Frehiwot, and Mokgophana Ramasobana.[5] Taken together, Blue Marble Evaluation, post-normal evaluation, equitable evaluation, and decolonizing evaluation can guide evaluation towards the radical reimagining required by the challenges of evaluating the SDGs and COVID-19 recovery well. All four of these trends also highlight the importance of critical and evaluative thinking. Blue Marble Evaluation, post-normal evaluation, equitable evaluation, and decolonizing evaluation can guide evaluation towards the radical reimagining required by the challenges of evaluating the SDGs and COVID-19 recovery well. Evaluative thinking for transformative evaluation What is evaluative thinking? It must be the thinking we (or any one does) while evaluating, you might say. In a sense, that is true, but in recent years, a number of evaluation scholars and practitioners have taken a deeper dive into this elusive concept. According to Patton, “Evaluation is an activity. Evaluative thinking is a way of doing business. This distinction is critical. It derives from studies of evaluation use. Evaluation is more useful—and actually used—when the programme and organizational culture manifests evaluative thinking.”[6] My colleagues and I have defined it as follows, “Evaluative thinking is critical thinking applied in the context of evaluation, motivated by an attitude of inquisitiveness and a belief in the value of evidence, that involves identifying assumptions, posing thoughtful questions, pursuing deeper understanding through reflection and perspective taking, and informing decisions in preparation for action.” (p. 384)[7] Expanding the horizon of what worldviews frame our conceptualizations of evaluative thinking and reasoning, Nan Wehipeihana and Kate McKegg also consider the ethical imperative of acknowledging and upholding the place of indigenous knowledge systems in evaluative thinking.[8] Evaluative thinking is both a fundamental philosophical foundation of evaluation and a way to develop evaluation capacity of individuals and organizations—to unleash the power of inquiry. It is similar to critical thinking and reflective practice, but also distinct, in that it centers the four-step logic of evaluation to make value judgments. Evaluative thinking is both a fundamental philosophical foundation of evaluation and a way to develop evaluation capacity of individuals and organizations—to unleash the power of inquiry. Here are some ways evaluative thinking relates to transforming evaluation to evaluate transformation: Evaluative thinking democratizes and decentralizes evaluative inquiry. Therefore, sensitive to power dynamics, citizens from all walks of life can find their place in collecting, analyzing, and using data. Evaluative thinking taps into practical wisdom and a plurality of ways of knowing and reasoning. Due to the messiness of “wicked problems,” practitioners don’t just apply technical solutions to technical problems. We are not robots. Rather, we engage in “reflection-in-action, a kind of ongoing experimentation, as a means to finding a viable solution to such problems” leading to “a particular kind of craft knowledge (or the wisdom of practice).”[9] Evaluative thinking is systems and equity thinking. By constantly identifying assumptions, taking multiple perspectives, and exploring relationships, evaluative thinking helps do the systems-oriented ‘glocal’ work BME requires, including the attention to power, positionality, and privilege that equitable evaluation necessitates. Evaluative thinking balances intuition and rationality. In a time where we must re-center values and facts in the face of the dangerous erosion of public discourse for good governance, evaluative thinking admits a plurality of ways of knowing while maintaining a critical eye on the credibility of claims and evidence. In these four ways, among others, evaluative thinking has the potential to effect functioning cultures of transformed evaluation needed to evaluate the SDGs well for the betterment of all. [1] The current geological age, viewed as the period during which human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/anthropocene/. [2] https://bluemarbleeval.org/principles/transformative-engagement-principle [3] Schwandt, T. A. (2019). Post-normal evaluation? Evaluation, 25(3), 317-329. [4] https://zendaofir.com/ten-essential-competencies-for-post-normal-evaluation/ [5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buwDju-Os2o [6] https://www.theclearinitiative.org/resources/embracing-evaluative-thinking-for-better-outcomes-four-ngo-case-studies [7] Buckley, J., Archibald, T., Hargraves, M., & Trochim, W. M. (2015). Defining and teaching evaluative thinking: Insights from research on critical thinking. American Journal of Evaluation, 36(3), 375-388. doi:10.1177/1098214015581706 [8] Wehipeihana, N., & McKegg, K. (2018). Values and culture in evaluative thinking: Insights from Aotearoa New Zealand. In A. T. Vo &T. Archibald (Eds.), Evaluative Thinking. New Directions for Evaluation. 158, 93–107. [9] Schwandt, T. (2015). Evaluation foundations revisited: Cultivating a life of the mind for practice. Stanford University Press. Thomas Archibald is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist in the Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education at Virginia Tech, where he also directs the Feed the Future Senegal Youth in Agriculture project. Thomas Archibald is winner of the American Evaluation Association Marcia Guttentag Promising New Evaluator Award, he serves on the Board of Directors of the Eastern Evaluation Research Society and is an Associate Editor of Evaluation and Program Planning. He received his PhD from Cornell University in 2013. Follow Thomas on Twitter and LinkedIn.

By Shada El-Sharif Climate Change and Sustainability Advisor; Founder, SustainMENA As countries begin to rebuild from the health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations has issued a call for the world to ‘build back better’. Early examples of this, like the European Green Deal have demonstrated how an ambitious, multi-sectoral plan that will impact the lives of millions of people can simply be captured by a few key bold targets to make the European economy more sustainable. Targets around climate action, biodiversity, circular economy and smart mobility have already raised the visibility of the Deal and will enable evaluation and communication of progress along the way. High quality and independent evaluation and communication of best practices and lessons learned around the implementation of the Deal will also help to sustain its buy-in within the European Union, and serve as an inspiration to other regions to embrace green recovery. MENA’s climate change and data challenge The Mediterranean region, which is home to several countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has been described as a ‘climate change hotspot’ in a United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) recent report, State of the Environment and Development (SoED)[1] in the Mediterranean. Populations and livelihoods in coastal cities of Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change (SDG 13) due to the increasing risk of sea level rise. It is no surprise that countries of the region are increasingly adopting low carbon and climate resilient policy frameworks. The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia’s (ESCWA) latest Arab Sustainable Development Report (ASDR)[2] highlights significant challenges in data availability on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across the 22 Arab States. For example, the limited information on ecosystems and interlinkages between climate change and invasive species was cited as one of the key barriers for advancing SDG 15 in the Arab world, where poor data availability hinders the capacity to incorporate impacts in management strategies, monitor progress and changes over time, and adapt plans to meet conservation challenges[3]. Jordan as a case study We often hear statements like “Jordan is one of the most water scarce countries in the world”[4] or “Jordan imports over 92 per cent of its energy requirements”[5], which is typically followed by a statement about the country being “the largest host of registered refugees in the world” (as of 2018, 2.8 million refugees registered with UNRWA and UNHCR)[6]. Jordan issued its Voluntary National Review (VNR) in 2017 on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda but has yet to submit its update. It has been tracking some of its SDG targets and indicators through the Department of Statistics (DoS)[7], however, communication of Jordan’s progress on the SDGs does not happen regularly enough to resonate with the public. This can be a lost opportunity, particularly to celebrate achievements. Better tracking, evaluation and communication around the SDGs in Jordan would galvanize the needed political buy-in to turn green transition plans into actions, and potential investment opportunities. Better tracking, evaluation and communication around the SDGs in Jordan would galvanize the needed political buy-in to turn green transition plans into actions, and potential investment opportunities. Progress on SDGs in Jordan: Despite limited communication of success stories, Jordan has made progress on key SDGs, both at the policy and project levels. For example: SDG 13: Jordan issued its Nationally Determined Contributions with a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 14 per cent in 2030 (with 12.5 per cent contingent on receiving international assistance) SDG 7: Jordan concluded three rounds of direct proposals to establish utility scale renewable energy projects, based on its landmark Law on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (2012) SDG 6: Jordan is home to Al-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant, one of the most energy efficient wastewater treatment plants globally SDG 11: Jordan has a fleet of over 20,000 electric vehicles SDG 2, 6, 7, 15: The Sahara Forest Project[8] in Aqaba is a successful demonstration of a water-energy-food nexus project. What ‘build back better’ could mean for Jordan: Jordan, like other countries in the region, is exploring what ‘build back better’ means for its national context. A good starting point is the National Green Growth Plan[9] (NGGP) issued by the Ministry of Environment in 2017. In order to operationalize the NGGP, Jordan recently issued the Green Growth National Action Plans (GG-NAPs) for the economy’s key sectors: water, energy, agriculture, waste, transport and tourism. As shown below, the GG-NAPs seek to achieve five national objectives that are interlinked with the SDGs. The policy development and implementation process of the GG-NAPs is captured in the graphic below, along with the desired impacts including jobs, carbon reductions, resource efficiency, and poverty reduction, all of which must be measured, evaluated and communicated regularly. Evaluation and communication of impact Jordan already has a robust green policy framework in place, but key to its success will be the ability to define, measure, monitor, evaluate and communicate impact across the desired objectives of the GG-NAPs. This will also help to prioritize post-COVID green recovery measures in the medium and long term. Furthermore, the ability to forecast and communicate on the green jobs created by this paradigm will be instrumental in securing wider support for this agenda, since unemployment continues to be a pressing challenge. Jordan already has a robust green policy framework in place, but key to its success will be the ability to define, measure, monitor, evaluate and communicate impact across the desired objectives of the Green Growth National Action Plans. Robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks of the green projects will also help Jordan and MENA countries to access international climate and sustainable finance. Jordan is well positioned to ‘build back better’ by turning its natural resource and socio-economic challenges into opportunities, by adopting a data-driven, green recovery pathway that is both climate resilient and deploys low carbon technologies. The communication of data-driven success stories along its green recovery journey will further facilitate cross-fertilization of best practices at the regional and global levels. This underscores the strategic importance of embedding an effective evaluation and communication framework as an integral component of its green recovery model. [1] UNEP. 2020. State of Environment and Development in the Mediterranean. [2] ESCWA. 2020. Arab Sustainable Development Report (ASDR) [3] ibid. [4] MWI. 2017. Water Reallocation Policy 2016. [5] MEMER. 2019. Energy Sector Brochure. [6] Jordan Economic Growth Plan 2018-2022 (UNRWA: United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNHCR: United Nations Higher Commission for Refugees) [7] Department of Statistics (DoS). 17 Dec 2020. SDG Tracker. http://jorinfo.dos.gov.jo/Databank/pxweb/en/SDG/ [8] Sahara Forest Project. https://www.saharaforestproject.com/ [9] Green Growth is defined by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) as economic growth that is environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive. Shada El-Sharif is a recognized thought leader on climate change, green economy and sustainable development in Jordan and MENA. Shada El-Sharif is an advisor to the Government of Jordan on Sustainable Development and Green Recovery, and served as Director of the Jordan Environment Fund at the Ministry of Environment. She holds MEng and BSc degrees in Environmental Engineering from Cornell University, and is pursuing an MPA at the Harvard Kennedy School. Shada is Founder and CEO of SustainMENA, an advisory and public awareness platform on climate change and sustainability in Jordan and the MENA region. Follow Shada on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn or contact her via shada@sustainmena.com.

By Michelle Ruiz Valdes Independent consultant, Member of the National Academy of Evaluators of Mexico (ACEVAL) In our practice, we are often faced with serious challenges in evaluating interventions in increasingly complex and uncertain contexts. A case in point is what we are experiencing at the beginning of this decade, the Decade of Action coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic. Although evaluation criteria framework of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is seen as one of the key evaluation benchmarks (that were recently updated in an inclusive process), we need today – perhaps more than any other time - methodologies that can guide evaluators on how to apply the criteria to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To manage complexity, we also need guidelines to identify the social, environmental and economic results of actions undertaken to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Complementing the DAC criteria with the principles of the 2030 Agenda While the 2030 Agenda explicitly states the need to develop effective, efficient, sustainable, and impactful interventions, it does not detail how DAC criteria can be articulated within the guidelines of the universal development agenda. In response, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Mexico has proposed a matrix that incorporates the DAC criteria (vertically) and the principles of the 2030 Agenda (horizontally). See Figure 1 below. Figure 1. Complementary approach - DAC Criteria with the principles of the 2030 Agenda Source: Adapted from El enfoque de la Agenda 2030 en planes y programas públicos en México (2019, p. 61). Incorporating the co-benefits approach The Government of Mexico, in cooperation with the Government of Germany, has coordinated studies that take into account the co-benefits approach in the efforts to articulate the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with the Paris Agreement for Climate Change. The co-benefit approach is a win-win strategy that assesses the direct, indirect and multi-directional outcomes of a single policy, measure or action (for more information, see Akiko Miyatsuka and Eric Zusman, What are Co-benefits? 2010). From a sustainable perspective, the results should have social, environmental and economic dimensions and benefits. Based on Spinning the Web: The Co-benefits Approach to an Integrated Implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement in Mexico, a catalogue of criteria and co-benefits is proposed for evaluating interventions to ensure sustainable dimensions. See Figure 2 below. Figure 2. A multidimensional approach - Catalogue of criteria and co-benefits Source: Author’s elaboration based on Spinning the Web (2018, p. 24 and 35). This catalogue allows evaluating the interrelation between two agendas such as the 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the national level in Mexico. Through the use of strategic planning tools, actors from different sectors share their knowledge, skills, and experiences to forecast future scenarios that explain what benefits result from this integration in a real life situation. Such knowledge, skills, and experiences have the potential to generate joint identification of necessary integrality conditions (norms, practices and incentives), and give recommendations or practical guidelines to try to achieve the potential scenarios in the short, medium and long terms. Weaving bridges between experiences: Practical tips Taking into account experiences presented above, it is important to understand that actions are not spontaneous. It is necessary to develop competencies that empower sustainability-oriented Young and Emerging Evaluators (YEEs). For this, I propose an approach based on involving actors to work together to clarify realities and communicate the potential benefits of including voices of sustainability-oriented YEEs in methodological approaches during the Decade of Action. This includes undertaking an action oriented approach, as detailed in Figure 3. Figure 3. Action oriented approach Source: Author’s own elaboration. - Articulate: Complement criteria with approaches that promote the integration of sustainable development (policy coherence for sustainable development, co-benefits, human rights, gender, among others). - Communicate: Disseminate the results of the actions under the principle of “leaving no one behind” and the benefits obtained from involving actors both in the development of strategies and methodological tools and in their application. - Translate: Adapt strategies and methodological tools relevant to the capacities of actors and to the regional, national, subnational and local contexts. This also means, as Spinning the Web indicates, to “translate the results […] into practical guidelines, for public officials in relevant sectors” (2018, p. 35) and for other actors, because the sustainable development implies the co-responsibility of all at different levels. - Involve: Encourage collaboration between actors and sectors to recognize and strengthen capacities, identify needs and prioritize actions (hard or soft) based on potential social, environmental and economic co-benefits and in the short, medium and long terms to "leave no one behind” . - Own: Give meaning to the elements of the 2030 Agenda through the prospection of potential scenarios in the short, medium and long terms and, develop competencies for a coherent adoption of its principles in our practices. - Nuance: Show that the results of actions are not subject to binary judgements; these can be positive, negative, inhibitory, catalytic, collateral and unconscious or unexpected. Under a co-benefits approach, the results of an action can be very different both between dimensions and within them. The usefulness of this approach is that it could encourage complementarity with the global agenda and, in the same way, it calls for integrated actions in the short, medium, and long terms. The paths to action are neither homogeneous nor linear; they depend on how evaluators define their role as “agents of change”, “promoters of sustainability” and, for those starting an evaluative practice, as "sustainability-oriented YEEs.” To define ourselves as evaluators in the complex world of a comprehensive global development agenda, it is important that in our work we acquire the competencies to promote approaches and methodologies that do not replace the past ones, but complement them and provide feedback on what has already been built to influence the actions of the present and the changes of the future. Figure 4. Competency approach Source: Author’s own elaboration based on the Eval4Action logo and Education for Sustainable Development Goals: Learning objectives (2017, p. 10). Michelle Ruiz Valdes has a BA in International Relations and a Masters in international Development Cooperation. She worked as a consultant for the Dr. José María Luis Mora Research Institute and UNDP Mexico. She currently works as an independent consultant and is a member of the National Academy of Evaluators of Mexico (ACEVAL). Follow Michelle on Twitter and LinkedIn or contact via michrv9228@gmail.com.

By Clement Mensah Consultant, Independent Development Evaluation, African Development Bank On 18 July 2020, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, in an address delivered in honour of Nelson Mandela International Day, bemoaned the growing global inequalities, charging world leaders to step up action in order to realize the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Indeed, various reports – including Oxfam’s Commitment to Reducing Inequality (CRI) Index 2018, World Inequality Lab’s World Inequality Report 2018, and the Bill and Melinda Gates’ Goalkeepers Examining Inequality 2019 – have similarly raised alarms about growing inequalities in the areas of income, gender, and access to social services and more. Besides, subnational inequalities between rural and urban areas or regions are also widening. For example, northern territories in West African countries such as Benin, Togo and Cote d’Ivoire are poorer compared to their southern counterparts. Unsurprisingly, the onset of the novel COVID-19 pandemic has come to exacerbate territorial inequalities. For example, a territorial assessment of the impact of the pandemic in some OECD countries revealed a disproportionate health and economic impact on poor urban areas and regions[1]. This clearly exposes the huge regional development disparities that exist within countries. And in some countries, these disparities have persisted for decades, with national development agendas favouring some people and places over others. Unsurprisingly, the onset of the novel COVID-19 pandemic has come to exacerbate territorial inequalities. Indeed, these territorial inequalities don’t just happen. They are the result of non-inclusive policies, weak institutional arrangements, and poor development governance processes including how governments set national policy priorities. This certainly calls for a rethink of regional development policies with broader national development agendas. But, do these rising regional inequalities mean anything for development evaluation? Can evaluators – through their evaluations – inform better regional development policies? I dare say yes! Territorial inequalities don’t just happen. They are the result of non-inclusive policies, weak institutional arrangements, and poor development governance processes. Leveraging the power of development evaluation In July 2019, I remotely participated in a side event jointly organized by EVALSDGs, UNICEF and UNITAR during the 2019 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. The event, which had a mix of senior evaluators and policy-makers as panellists, discussed pertinent issues regarding the evaluation imperatives for a successful implementation of the SDGs at the country level. What actually stood out for me though was a terse discussion on the power of evaluation. Not only did the panellists reinforce the accountability-promoting function of evaluations, but they also talked about how evaluation lessons could be leveraged to shape and bring about improvements in government policies and development interventions in general. And that for governments and their development partners, investing more in evaluation is a win-win for better inclusive development policies. Hence, I believe the development evaluation community stands in a very good position to help governments and development partners design as well as implement the right policies and interventions using the most effective institutional arrangements and processes so as to correct these growing subnational inequalities. Of course, by the nature of their work, evaluators do not have the luxury of choosing which interventions to evaluate. But as a community, they can be a critical force in shaping conversations and debates on topical developmental issues including for instance, pointing out areas where evidence is lacking regarding what works and what doesn’t in the fight against regional development inequalities. Evaluators do not have the luxury of choosing which interventions to evaluate. But as a community, they can be a critical force in shaping conversations and debates on topical developmental issues. How can the evaluation community be a part of the solution? There are a number of ways by which the evaluation community can help governments tackle growing inequalities. First, a renewed evaluation agenda that specifically targets territorially-focused inclusive development policies and interventions is needed. There is a dearth of evidence on the effectiveness of regional development policies – especially in developing countries – even though many countries continue to try out place-based and regional policies aimed at revitalizing historically disadvantaged territories. Stepping up evaluation efforts in this regard is crucial. Of course, such an agenda should also prioritize the policy-making design processes and development structures. For example, as part of country-focused evaluations, it may be vital to examine how national policy priority setting happens. Also, in some countries, meso-level, territorially-focused development authorities have been established to augment traditional local government structures. We need to understand whether such parallel arrangements are more effective in addressing subnational inequalities or otherwise. Second, we need to develop new tools for measuring efforts towards leaving no place behind. For governments and development partners alike, having in place some form of validation tools that are able to flag how their policies and programmes are sensitive to regional disparities in-country is important. Specific to multilateral development banks (MDBs), including a specific benchmark in validation tools – in addition to other thematic areas such as gender and green growth – can help flag whether a country support programme adequately guarantees equitable regional development. By doing this, evaluation offices will afford MDBs the opportunity to have a deliberate approach to addressing subnational inequalities. Developing complementary tools specifically dedicated to tracking and measuring governments efforts and or readiness to bridging territorial disparities is key. In addition, tools such as the multidimensional poverty index continue to provide useful insights into subnational patterns in the area of poverty for example. But developing complementary tools specifically dedicated to tracking and measuring governments efforts and or readiness to bridging territorial disparities is key. By nature, regional development programmes are complex and so is their evaluation. Having some sort of an index or dashboard with a granular insight into in-country disparities is a good start. Such tool can be comparable across countries. One of the benefits of such a tool is that it will elevate issues of subnational disparities and demonstrate how governments across the world are addressing them, allowing for sharing of best practice. Third, there is a need to build evaluation capacities for regional development. This may include the development and dissemination of contemporary guidelines for conducting evaluations for regional development policies and programmes. In addition, deepening regional development-evaluation dialogues using platforms such as a community of practice may be helpful. These recommendations are not exhaustive but provide good entry points for the development evaluation community to proactively engage in discourses on subnational inequalities. But, this cannot happen without the support of governments themselves. It is only in such collaborative spirit that the development evaluation community can support them win the inequality battle and eventually make significant strides towards leaving no place behind by 2030. [1] OECD. 2020. The territorial impact of COVID-19: Managing the crisis across levels of government. https://read.oecd-ilibrary.org/view/?ref=128_128287-5agkkojaaa&title=The-territorial-impact-of-covid-19-managing-the-crisis-across-levels-of-government Clement Mensah is a researcher and an emerging evaluator currently working as a consultant with the Independent Development Evaluation Unit of the African Development Bank. He is a member of the South African Monitoring & Evaluation Association and a doctoral candidate at the Institute for Social Development, University of the Western Cape, South Africa. Follow Clement on Twitter and LinkedIn or contact via mcashine@gmail.com.

By Jayathma Wickramanayake United Nations Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth In recent years, ‘youth’ has become a bit of a buzzword in relation to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – this is great, of course, but too often the involvement of young people is limited to one-off consultations or being tasked with the responsibilities of implementation without any follow up. As the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, promoting youth-led accountability for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is at the core of my mandate, along with ensuring that young people are included in all phases of our work – from allocating budgets, designing programmes, monitoring implementation and critically reviewing progress. Although championing the critical involvement of youth is part of my professional mission, it is also my genuine belief that the only way to realize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is if all partners work towards it as equal partners. Achieving the 2030 Agenda with and for young people Youth are recognized as torchbearers for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. [1] Currently our world is the youngest it has ever been, with over 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 and 24. The success or failure in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals will directly affect the empowerment and opportunities of this generation of young people, the majority of whom call the global south their home; close to 90 per cent. Even though they are undoubtedly the generation most impacted by the delivery of the 2030 Agenda, young people are not passively waiting for change to happen. They are taking matters into their own hands; leading initiatives in their communities, countries and at the global level to advance, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the SDGs. Not only is the Eval4Action campaign aligned with Youth2030: The UN Youth Strategy and the Decade of Action, but the EvalYouth Global Network is co-founder and co-leader of the campaign. This campaign sets a good example of how the UN can be working not only for, but with young people. With 10 years to go until 2030, accelerated action in speed and scope is needed to meet the Goals – and young people must be at the forefront. We need to strengthen youth-led accountability processes at global, regional and national levels, building capacity of young evaluators and advocating for strengthening national evaluation systems and capacities together with other stakeholders. The launch of the “Decade of EVALUATION of Action” brings me incredible joy because of its proactive initiative to ensure the space for meaningful youth participation at all levels. Not only is the Eval4Action campaign aligned with Youth2030: The UN Youth Strategy and the Decade of Action, but the EvalYouth Global Network is co-founder and co-leader of the campaign. This campaign sets a good example of how the UN can be working not only for, but with young people. ‘Believe in Better’ In my work, I am privileged to meet young people from all over the world leading action in their local communities. One thing is clear; although young people often do not have a seat at the decision-making table and structural barriers prevent their participation, they still find creative and innovative informal ways to take the lead. Whether this is through their own work, campaigns to improve meaningful youth participation, shadow reporting, providing citizen-generated data, designing their own youth-led monitoring and evaluation frameworks or championing awareness of the SDGs at the local and national level – they are committed to making the 2030 Agenda a success. Enhanced and more inclusive evaluation provides evidence, lessons and pathways to strengthen equality for all, including the most disadvantaged youth. To capture some of these stories and good examples of youth-led accountability, my Office – in partnership with Action Aid Denmark, Restless Development and the Major Group for Children and Youth – recently launched a working paper titled ‘Believe in Better’. This paper provides concrete recommendations for governments, civil society and international organizations on how to make accountability processes more inclusive of young people in all their diversity. While I encourage you all to read it, I also want to highlight a few of its main findings: We need to strengthen meaningful youth inclusion in the accountability processes and in the Voluntary National Review’s presented annually by Member States to the High level Political Forum; To avoid ‘consultation fatigue’ we must focus on bringing ‘accountability back’ to young partners, monitors or reviewers who do a great job contributing with data, but who are rarely included in all steps of a process, including presentation of results and decision making; We need to strengthen ownership of the SDG agenda at all levels by creating accountability processes that are embedded, localized and transparent, leaving no one behind. In strengthening capacities of young evaluators, we must enable spaces and build inclusive processes where young people in all their diversity, especially young women and girls, indigenous youth, young people with disabilities, young people who identify as LGBTIQ and other marginalized groups can participate in a meaningful and safe way. Enhanced and more inclusive evaluation provides evidence, lessons and pathways to strengthen equality for all, including the most disadvantaged youth. We cannot afford to leave young people behind If young people are not part of measuring the progress of the SDGs and adjusting our policies and strategies accordingly, we will be leaving the most vulnerable groups behind. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic – which has affected all our lives – this conversation is more important than ever. Still around the world, youth are at the forefront demanding accountability from decision makers. Now is the time to even further strengthen their meaningful and inclusive participation in the formal processes that lead to actual change. The global crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic has widened social and economic inequalities, and its socioeconomic consequences disproportionately affects the future and present of young people. Still around the world, youth are at the forefront demanding accountability from decision makers. Now is the time to even further strengthen their meaningful and inclusive participation in the formal processes that lead to actual change. I want to welcome the launch of the Eval4Action campaign and congratulate all partners. I am convinced that this will be an important platform to enhance our common advocacy to put youth-led accountability front and center of the Decade of Action and the 10 years left to deliver on the SDGs. [1] UNDESA. 2018. World Youth Report. youth and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2018/12/WorldYouthReport-2030Agenda.pdf Jayathma Wickramanayake was appointed as the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth in June 2017 at the age of 26. In this role, Jayathma Wickramanayake works to expand the UN’s work with and for young people and advocacy efforts across all four pillars of work – sustainable development, human rights, peace and security and humanitarian action – and serves as a representative of and advisor to the Secretary-General. Follow Jayathma on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook via @UNYouthEnvoy. For more information, visit un.org/youthenvoy.

By Leticia Taimo, Margie Roper and Zamokuhle Thwala Khulisa Management Services This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, South Africa’s education system was facing tremendous challenges in providing quality education in the majority of the country’s schools. As Khulisa has reported in early grade reading evaluation reports, the basic education system in South Africa (Grade 1 to 12) consistently performs poorly on international ratings. In 2016, the Progress in International Reading and Literacy Study (PIRLS) indicated that 78% of South African Grade 4 learners were not reading for meaning. This means that 8 out of 10 South African children do not learn to read for meaning in the early years of school. [1] The COVID-19 pandemic and its ensuing series of lockdowns, school closures, and the necessity to rotate learners and observe strict social distancing protocols have intensified these challenges tremendously. In the wake of the pandemic, evaluating teaching methods and learner outcomes has become more critical than ever to address learning losses and build back better. At the same time, evaluations have become more difficult to conduct during the pandemic. More so than ever before, evaluations must be flexible and adaptable in order to be effective. The circumstances of the pandemic, while challenging, have created unique opportunities for innovation and accelerated the demand for, and immediate use of, evaluation data. Conducting actionable evaluations during a pandemic: What we’ve learned Khulisa and its partners undertook an assignment focused on evaluating early grade reading; creating language benchmarks for learners in two languages; and researching the social-emotional effects of COVID-19 on early grade reading, learning, and teaching. The circumstances of the pandemic, while challenging, have created unique opportunities for innovation and accelerated the demand for, and immediate use of, evaluation data. The bulk of the data collection took place in September 2021, between two devastating waves of COVID-19. Conducting this work during such a difficult time for the South African education system taught us several important lessons about how to make our evaluations accessible and immediately useful to policymakers: While conducting a high-stakes evaluation, it is crucial to build and maintain a strong relationship with the client/partner, in this case, the South African Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The DBE was very interested in the results of these evaluations and played a crucial role in evaluation design, instrument development, and training and selecting fieldworkers. Constant communication and joint planning with DBE led to more trust and buy-in, which increased the chances DBE would adopt the recommendations that emerged from our evaluations. For example, in February 2022, due to the recommendations provided in Khulisa’s research and other studies, the DBE and the Government of South Africa changed COVID-19 regulations to allow learners to return to school full-time and ended rotational learning. Evaluators must be agile and flexible in choosing the data collection methods that are responsive to their client’s needs. While in the proposal-writing stage, since it was uncertain when and how schools would reopen, Khulisa intentionally included a data collection method that did not require physical presence in schools. Khulisa contracted Geopoll to conduct Computer Assisted Telephonic Interviews (CATI) with school management teams, teachers, and parents, which ensured we were able to collect the data we needed amidst the uncertainty of pandemic school closures. Breaking data collection into multiple points within the span of the evaluation helps increase the data’s usability. In our case, we broke the data collection into three phases: 1) collecting data from school leaders; 2) collecting data in schools (whenever we were allowed back in schools); and 3) collecting data from parents. This approach helped us be strategic about which questions to ask when and to whom, avoiding duplication of effort and maximizing our evaluation insights. Our phased data collection approach also allowed the client to receive evidence in a timely fashion and take action in the moments that mattered most. Moving forward This project was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the lessons learned are useful for all evaluations – not only those conducted during a crisis. Constant engagement with key stakeholders and flexibility in project implementation are important for dealing with unexpected challenges in every project. Thus, it’s essential to build in sufficient time for flexibility when budgeting for the evaluation, and to be intentional about creating opportunities for key stakeholders to be involved in the evaluation process and take action on the results. In the case of the COVID-19 research portion of Khulisa’s project with DBE and USAID, which has now been concluded, our team was successful in accelerating demand for the use of evidence by policy makers. We also learned that, as evaluators, we should always consider innovative ways to be responsive to client needs and provide timely data, which leads to increased interest in the evaluation findings and ultimate use of the evidence. We will be taking these lessons forward in our evaluations in the future. The other component of this project (the language benchmarks and two impact evaluations) are still underway, and we are looking forward to seeing how evidence emerging from this project phase is used for action. [1] Spaull, N. 2017, The unfolding reading crisis: the new PIRLS 2016 results. Available from: https://nicspaull.com/2017/12/05/the-unfolding-reading-crisis-the-new-pirls-2016-results/ Leticia Taimo works at Khulisa Management Services as Senior Associate Evaluator. She has worked on several evaluation, research and assessment projects for a variety of stakeholders (private sector, NGOs, government and international donors). Ms Taimo was awarded the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship in 2013 and the Commonwealth Scholarship in 2014 as recognition of her commitment to social change in the African continent. Follow Leticia on LinkedIn and contact her via ltaimo@khulisa.com. Margaret Roper leads Khulisa’s Education and Development Division, supporting clients such as USAID, UN agencies and the LEGO Foundation. She provides technical expertise and leadership on programme development, monitoring, evaluation and knowledge sharing in education, human trafficking and social development. Ms Roper is a PhD candidate at Lancaster University, United Kingdom (UK). Follow Margaret on LinkedIn. Zamokuhle Thwala is a Junior Project Manager at Khulisa Management Services focusing primarily on providing project and fieldwork management support. Ms Thwala has strong project management skills, data quality assurance, as well as project administration. Prior to joining Khulisa, Ms Thwala worked for the University of the Witwatersrand. She has also worked in other community-based projects, mostly focusing on young people. Follow Zamokuhle on LinkedIn.

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By Ayabulela Dlakavu and Tebogo Fish CLEAR - Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA) It is generally accepted that evaluation theory and practice originates from the Global North. These origins mean that evaluation has not escaped neoliberal ideology which dominates the economic, political and social organisation of the developed Global North. Voluntary Organisations for Professional Evaluation (VOPEs) likewise are a Global North invention, tasked with a mandate of advancing evaluation practice as a vehicle of improving development planning, decision-making, policy and programme formulation and implementation. As with evaluation theory and practice, the form and structure of African VOPEs are also based on the Global North model of national evaluation associations or societies. Having studied and worked with VOPEs in Africa, we are of the view that the unique challenges and barriers faced by VOPEs in developing regions and countries warrant the development of a new VOPE model for the Global South. For instance, African countries generally experience widespread development challenges such as high levels of poverty, unemployment, inequality and political instability. The reality of low demand for evaluation and the limited use of monitoring data by public sector institutions minimizes the effectiveness of interventions aimed at addressing these challenges. The limited human and financial resources dedicated to evaluation practice, as well as monitoring for compliance only, are common challenges that impede the use of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) evidence for decision-making. Therefore, a western VOPE model, which has largely emerged from a context of high demand for evaluations from national and subnational governments, adequate evaluation capacity, funding, as well as citizens’ demand for transparency and accountability of government operations, is not suitable for the African context. An enabling environment, therefore, does not exist for the Global North VOPE model that is stimulated by existing evaluation capacity among practitioners, a significant demand for evaluation from the state, civil society and the citizenry. This Afro-centric evaluative paradigm should therefore drive the indigenisation and innovation in M&E practice on the continent. The macro-environment within which African VOPEs operate is as follows: challenges with regards to evaluation capacity, the nascent nature of evaluation practice (evaluation agenda generally driven by bilateral and multilateral donors/development partners), lack of demand for evaluation from governments and national legislatures, the dominance of performance reporting (monitoring), lack of citizen demand for evaluation (although citizens hold the state accountable in certain procedural and substantive democracies). This context is not similar to the enabling environment present in the Global North. It, therefore, follows that African VOPEs need to be structured in a manner that is responsive to the challenges posed by the macro-environment described above. It is the duty of African VOPEs and evaluators to develop Afro-centric research and evaluation methodologies that will enable the adequate participation of all intended African beneficiaries of development intervention irrespective of race, gender, age and class. There is a need for African VOPEs to build a cadre of evaluators that is able to theorise and apply a nuanced evaluation paradigm that seeks to highlight and address issues relating to high unemployment, poverty, inequality and political instability. An Afro-centric evaluation paradigm should not seek to impose neoliberal ideology such as demanding democratisation but should rather advocate for governance that is responsive to the socio-economic challenges described above. An Afro-centric evaluative paradigm should seek to measure the degree to which development interventions in Africa are able to incrementally address poverty, unemployment and inequality which often trigger political instability in the form of civil unrest, unconstitutional changes in government and revolutions. This Afro-centric evaluative paradigm should therefore drive the indigenisation and innovation in M&E practise on the continent. Scientific revolutions are partly induced by methodological innovation that challenges traditional methods of inquiry. It is the duty of African VOPEs and evaluators to develop Afro-centric research and evaluation methodologies that will enable the adequate participation of all intended African beneficiaries of development intervention irrespective of race, gender, age and class. Afro-centric evaluative methodologies should be routed in indigenous modes of knowledge generation such as storytelling. Furthermore, anthropological methodologies that are routed in participant observation, such as ethnography, should be advanced by African VOPEs and affiliated evaluators. African VOPEs and evaluators have a historic mission of not only charting an independent and alternative evaluative path for Africa, but also defining development indicators that are relevant to the African context. Through such a rigorous and strategic repositioning of African VOPEs and evaluators, national VOPEs will be able to influence policymakers and development practitioners due to an enhanced ability to measure and articulate the development needs and demands of African populations. The African Evaluation Association (AfrEA) has gone in the right direction by placing the Made in Africa Evaluation (MAE) approach at the top of Africa’s evaluation discourse agenda. This MAE paradigm is the Afro-centric evaluation approach that we have advocated for in the preceding section above. Through AfrEA’s advocacy, the macro-environment also presents opportunities for the advancement of Afro-centricity in evaluation scholarships and practice on the continent. It is this African character that will also strengthen Afro-centric conceptualisation of what development should look like in an African socio-economic and political context that has proven that neoliberal socio-economic policy and political systems are not necessarily suited to Africa. African VOPEs and evaluators have a historic mission of not only charting an independent and alternative evaluative path for Africa but also defining development indicators that are relevant to the African context. While VOPEs are central to building strong and sustainable Afro-centric national evaluation systems, other evaluation stakeholders such as governments, evaluation capacity development stakeholders, civil society organisations, and bilateral and multilateral donors/development partners must also play a part. While VOPEs are central to building strong and sustainable Afro-centric national evaluation systems, other evaluation stakeholders such as governments, evaluation capacity development stakeholders, civil society organisations, and bilateral and multilateral donors/development partners must also play a part. Evaluation capacity development (ECD) stakeholders such as the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results – Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA), the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results – Francophone Africa (CLEAR-FA) and other ECD stakeholders must provide technical and financial assistance to the endeavour of developing Afro-centric evaluation methodologies, working side-by-side with African VOPEs. It is only through an Afro-centric evaluative lens that African evaluators will be able to accurately capture the extent to which this continent has achieved the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, African Union Agenda 2063 and national development plans and visions. This is the intellectual and professional challenge to which African evaluation practitioners must respond. Ayabulela Dlakavu is an M&E practitioner, analyst of public and foreign policy and political economist based at the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results-Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA). He is also a PhD candidate and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Johannesburg. Ayabulela is also a member of the South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA) and African Evaluation Association (AfrEA). Follow Ayabulela on Twitter and LinkedIn. Contact him via ayabulela.dlakavu@wits.ac.za. Tebogo Fish is a researcher working at CLEAR-AA in Johannesburg, South Africa. She holds a Master’s Degree in Research Psychology with research interests in M&E and development issues in Africa. Tebogo is also a member of SAMEA and AfrEA. Follow Tebogo on LinkedIn. Contact her via tebogo.fish1@wits.ac.za.

By Dana Cristina Repede Member, Young and Emerging Evaluators group of the European Evaluation Society (yEES!) This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. Dana Cristina Repede interviewed Virgil Pamfil, the acting President of RoSE (Romanian Society of Evaluators) to unpack the VOPE’s efforts to professionalize evaluation in Romania, notably through developing occupational standards and implementing a code of conduct for evaluators. Professionalizing evaluation Dana: In your video for Eval4Action’s Walk the Talk you speak about RoSE’s endeavor to professionalize evaluation in Romania. What does professionalization of evaluation mean and what are the few steps that RoSE took to that end? Virgil: On one hand, the discussion about the professionalization of evaluation should be put in terms of developing an appropriate enabling environment. This may involve designing, adopting and implementing legislation and/or policies to institutionalize national evaluation systems, but also institutionalizing the profession through different elements such as developing occupational standards, codes of conduct etc. In Romania, the occupational standards for evaluators were thought to make a major contribution to the development of the profession because they participate in the design of a large array of activities within evaluation: performance, workforce design, etc. through standardizing them. Occupational standards have implications not only on productivity, but also on the development of human capital. Therefore, by enabling the basis for the development of educational schemes, such as initial and continuous learning for evaluators, the standards ensure that there is a link between human capital investment and productivity, the market’s needs, etc. In line with this, RoSE has been certified as a training provider since 2013 and delivers training and mentoring to evaluators. On the other hand, professionalization has to be developed at individual level through strengthening the capacities of individuals’ knowledge and skills. In other words, the personal drive of an individual to continuously improve, and to be responsible or accountable for actions taken, is especially significant in the evaluation profession. RoSE considers itself as an active actor that participates in building an evaluation culture because of its two-tier strategy of taking action at institutional and individual level. RoSE has been a catalyst for action through its activity of knowledge sharing and networking. In this respect, the three projects implemented in partnership with VOPEs from North Macedonia, Albania, and Kosovo under the peer to peer programme supported by International Organization for Cooperation in Evaluation (IOCE) is a key milestone in RoSE interventions. Dana: What is RoSE’s roadmap for continuing to professionalize evaluation in the future? Virgil: This is difficult to say because it is still a long way from building an evaluation culture in Romania as the National Policy, Strategy, and Action Plan are still pending. However, as a EU Member State and a beneficiary of EU Funding Instruments, Romania has to comply with a complex regulatory framework that defines requirements to evaluate impacts of the EU programmes. While on one hand, the evaluation is driven by the EU level law, on the other hand, the Member States can make use of their national approaches. It is therefore up to each country to support the evaluators’ job market and profession in accordance with market needs. In Romania, there is an increasing need for evaluators to cover various areas of interventions in sustainable development to measure the achievement and performance of policies, programmes and projects. However, not having specific evaluators profiles that cover these areas included in the Code of Occupations prevents Romanian evaluators from participating in certain calls for experts as they would not comply with the requirements. Dana: Is evaluation in Romania recognized as an established profession (shared purpose, common identity, common agreement of the practitioners on the responsibilities and characteristics of the profession)? Virgil: More or less! In Romania evaluation is very much considered as a cross-cutting occupation. The evaluators come from different fields of expertise. Therefore, they are assigned in most cases on a short-term basis to do a job that complies with their previous work records. It is like the problem with the chicken and the egg – who was first? Without having specific previous working experience an applicant evaluator won’t win the assignment, and if they don’t get assignments an evaluator cannot gain working experience. The academic and continuing education opportunities for evaluators are leading to higher competition and fewer roles. A framework for defining occupational standards Dana: How do you do an Occupational Standard framework for the field of evaluation? Please share your experience and recommendations. Virgil: In Romania, the process of establishing the Occupational Standards was rather long because of the many stages that had to be followed in accordance with the law and the standard procedure enforced by the Romanian Authority of Qualifications. It took about one year, and fortunately it was fast-tracked thanks to RoSE’s internal expertise for drafting occupational standards. The first step was to collect data on the occupation and process them under an occupational analysis in order to convince the national authorities of the importance of our action. Once the occupational analysis was endorsed, the next step was to identify the necessary key competencies structured by elements of competence, knowledge, skills, and behaviours, working contexts, and the range of variables. Afterwards, the Draft Occupational Standard was subject to audit and assessment by several authorities, such as the Government's Sectoral Committee and the National Authority of Qualifications. Finally, after about 12 months of work, in 2012, the Occupational Standard was published online by the National Register of Qualifications, as a reference for education and certification of competencies for project evaluators. Dana: Which are the evaluator competencies included in the Occupational Standard for Project Evaluators (OSPE)? Virgil: These were structured into three categories, namely: key competencies, competencies that cover related occupations and specific competencies. There are five specific competence units as follows: individual preparation for evaluation, organization of evaluation process, project evaluation, validation of evaluation results and provision of technical assistance for selecting the projects. Each competence unit has set the level of responsibility and autonomy, and it is structured by elements of competence, criteria for achievement of the associated results and tasks. They also provide specific information on the working conditions, range of variables and compulsory knowledge. It is worth highlighting that the OSPE designed by RoSE refers to evaluators of projects, due to limitations in the Code of Occupations of Romania (COR), which does not include the positions of Evaluator of Programmes and Evaluator of Policies. Even though it is the Government’s responsibility to include these occupations in the COR, there is a lack of awareness about the different profiles of evaluation professionals. With effective lobbying, the occupational framework could be diversified with a larger array of evaluators profiles. Code of professional conduct Dana: Why is a Code of Professional Conduct important for the evaluation profession? Virgil: In Romania, when selecting a person to provide evaluation services, only a statement of no conflict is requested. Unfortunately, it does not include rules about behaviours, values, and decision-making skills. Therefore, RoSE as a professional organization has decided to define its own Code of Professional Conduct to set standards and expectations for its members. We consider that the Code of Conduct of evaluators is a mandatory addition to the competency framework. Dana: How difficult is it in Romania for an evaluator to adhere to the Code of Professional Conduct? Virgil: There is no obligation in Romania for an evaluator to adhere to a Code of Professional Conduct. As far as I know, no other organization formally requires the evaluators to adhere to a Code of Conduct, but only to sign a statement of no conflict of interest. As a professional VOPE, RoSE’s priority was to define its professional culture quickly, to set standards and expectations to enable its customers and partners to know its values,and to create a level of transparency for a healthy business relationship. Evaluation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Dana: How can the professionalization of evaluation be beneficial in the national review system of SDGs? Virgil: It is indisputable that professionalization of evaluation is beneficial and it is a must for the national review system of SDGs. Two elements are necessary for an effective SDG implementation and monitoring: good coordination at the level of government because the process is expected to be country-led evaluation work, and a multi-level perspective with functional interlinkages and coordination between all actors. The importance of evaluation in the process is that it generates evidence and evidence can contribute to strategies to operationalize the SDGs and inform policy and management decisions. However, adequate evaluation capacity is needed to ensure the quality of measuring SDG targets. This means that each country, and Romania in particular, must develop an effective professional framework for evaluators with clear profiles that cover the entire Policy Intervention Level (policy, programme, project, activity) at the government and civil society levels. Dana Cristina Repede has a Masters in Monitoring and Evaluation from the University of Saarland and Masters in Sociology from the Université Libré de Bruxelles. Currently she works as an M&E consultant with Ann-Murray Brown consultancy. Dana has worked for the European Commission holding various positions such as Programme Manager, Policy Officer and External Auditor. Follow Dana on LinkedIn and contact her via derepede@gmail.com. Virgil Pamfil has 30+ years of experience in the area of public administration and civil service reform, socio-economic development, education, democracy and rule of law, capacity building, decentralization and governance programmes. With a master’s degree in economics, postgraduate studies and certifications in project management, he has been assigned as a key expert in projects in various countries. In 2015 Virgil received an IOCE Regional Award for his contributions to evaluation in Europe. Follow Virgil on LinkedIn and contact him via vpamfil@evaluatoriasociati.ro.

By Tessie Tzavaras Catsambas Founder and CEO/CFO, EnCompass LLC This blog is part of the Eval4Action ‘Walk the Talk’ blog series. The series details six nominated actions for influential evaluation that were contributed during the Walk the Talk drive, held in October 2021. These lessons and reflections inspire greater action for influential evaluation in the Decade of Action. When EvalYouth Global Network, Global Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation and the UNFPA Evaluation Office announced the Eval4Action campaign, the EnCompass team immediately signed on for three reasons: Evaluation. We believe in the role of evaluation in promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and leaving no one behind. As Marco Segone (Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office) said in the introductory video for Eval4Action, evaluation is well-positioned to have “the highest multiplier effect on sustainable development.” We agree, as evidenced in EnCompass’ mission: to support organizations through evidence, engagement, and learning to harness their strengths and diversity for sustainable positive impact. Values. Our values of celebrating diversity and co-creation align well with Eval4Action’s values of inclusion and partnership. The focus on action resonates with us as an inclusive invitation to every person and organization to contribute based on their strengths. Youth. Sustainable change must involve young people, because they should have a role in shaping the future that belongs to them and future generations. They bring energy, passion, ideas, confidence, and impatience. Participating in the Eval4Action campaign gave EnCompass the opportunity to focus action on these important values, to see the link between actions already taking place across our company, and to find new ways to support the SDGs. Let me share briefly what we learned through our participation in the Eval4Action campaign: Lesson 1: An openness to younger people opens the mind, invites curiosity, and energizes communities. Young people are invested in the future in a more immediate way than those of us who have been around for a while. Things that older people had to unlearn and or learn later in life, young people know, because they grew up with them. They have instincts informed by that knowledge and fresh ways of seeing possibilities. In action: Hosting a GEDI scholar. For a long time, we hoped to get to a place where we could host a scholar from the American Evaluation Association’s Graduate Evaluation Diversity Initiative (GEDI). In 2020, we were able to host our first GEDI scholar, and hope to continue to be a participating host organization for the programme in the future. Our excitement when we welcomed our first GEDI intern was palpable and the experience was rewarding for all of us. Participating in the Eval4Action campaign gave EnCompass the opportunity to focus action on these important values, to see the link between actions already taking place across our company, and to find new ways to support the SDGs. Lesson 2: Action builds confidence and renews commitment. You can surprise yourself with what your own action can achieve, especially when others are engaging in similar action. You can be inspired by yourself and your colleagues and be optimistic about what is possible, and you can take action to bring that possibility to life. In action: Developing the Gender Transformative Design and Evaluation Learning Programme. EnCompass has been working in gender since the earlier days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and conducted some of the earliest gender-based violence (GBV) research under the United States Agency for International Development’s AIDSTAR One Project. Since then, we have refined and integrated new approaches and tools such as an Appreciative Gender Assessment, the Gender Integration Continuum, the Toolkit for GBV Integration in the Transport Sector, and many others. Inspired by the Eval4Action campaign, we decided to launch a new online learning programme in the EnCompass Learning Center (ELC) that brings together some of the things we have learned over the years. This was harder to organize than you would think; with staff members working all over the world, we had to put in extra effort to make people available for pulling this course together. The result has been rewarding, both because of our own learning, and because of the enthusiastic response by the broader learning community. We have now set new goals for ourselves to expand our gender programme with additional modules such as gender budgeting, gender indicators, integrating LGBTIQ+ communities, and intersectionality with race and ethnicity. Being part of the Eval4Action campaign gave us a lift in these efforts, knowing we are not alone, and fired us up by the shared intensity of commitment to a vision where no one is left behind and our planet is protected and cherished for future generations. Lesson 3: Focusing on and engaging in action becomes a mindset. The focus for action invited participants to turn their good intentions into reality, showing us that we can each contribute toward the SDGs. The motivation and confidence that is built from focused and intentional action develops a new muscle in the brain and the way we approach our work. Yes, we were intentional before, but now, we have become more so. The SDGs offer standards through which we review our broader success and progress, and they call us to tackle complex international development questions in new ways. As a company, we are discussing how to move more effectively toward racial and ethnic equity, how to build more equity and mutuality in our relationships with partners in the countries where we work, and how to enact inclusion inside our company and with our clients’ communities. Being part of the Eval4Action campaign gave us a lift in these efforts, knowing we are not alone, and fired us up by the shared intensity of commitment to a vision where no one is left behind and our planet is protected and cherished for future generations. In action: Volunteering time to support the Eval4Action launch and offering free slots to EvalYouth in ELC classes. The COVID-19 pandemic had just hit when Eval4Action launched, so when in-person regional launches became impossible, EnCompass enthusiastically agreed to host and emcee the online launches. It ended up being a bigger endeavor than anticipated because of the enthusiasm generated by the campaign in every region! For our staff, participating in Eval4Action was one of the most exciting things we were doing, and colleagues eagerly awaited news of each new launch. For those most closely involved in the regional launches, the most exciting part was working closely with EvalYouth leaders in different regions. These EvalYouth leaders brought an unrestrained vision of what was possible, and were undaunted by obstacles. For example, when we wanted to have language interpretation, EvalYouth leaders found volunteers among themselves; they organized group facilitators and preparation meetings, created communication material in different languages, and found quick avenues to disseminate the news. Inspired by these young leaders, EnCompass decided to offer a series of free spots in ELC classes when the regional launches ended, so we could do our small part in supporting this incredible, awesome network called EvalYouth. So, Eval4Action colleagues, what’s next? We have no doubt that EvalYouth will lead the way, and EnCompass is ready to be by their side. Tessie Catsambas has 30 years of experience in planning, evaluation and organizational development. She was the 2019 president of the American Evaluation Association. She is an innovator in appreciative evaluation methods, authored the first published research on appreciative evaluation (Journal for International Health Care Quality, Volume 14, Supplement I, December 2002), and co-authored Reframing Evaluation Through Appreciative Inquiry (Sage Publications 2006). Follow Tessie on Twitter and contact her via tcatsambas@encompassworld.com.

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