The Eval4Action seventh regional consultation will take place in North America on 20 April 2021, on the theme ‘Influential evaluation to advance the Sustainable Development Goals’. It is being organized by the American Evaluation Association (AEA), the Canadian Evaluation Society (CES), ACEVAL, the Young and Emerging Evaluators Network of AEA and EvalYouth Mexico in partnership with UNFPA Evaluation Office and EvalYouth Global Network. The regional consultation is an opportunity for evaluation practitioners, evaluation users, VOPE leaders, young and emerging evaluators, policy makers and other stakeholders to shape regional priorities for influential evaluation, to accelerate progress toward the Global Goals. The event also marks the launch of Eval4Action in North America. UPDATE: The regional consultation recording is available here. For any questions, please email zachary.d.tilton@wmich.edu.

The fourth Eval4Action regional consultation will take place in Europe on 21 October 2020 at 9 am EDT, 3 pm CEST. The event is organised by the European Evaluation Society (EES), the Network of Evaluation Societies in Europe (NESE) and EvalYouth Europe. This event will mark the launch of the Eval4Action campaign in Europe. The consultation will include interactive sessions to bring together diverse ideas and voices that will shape the regional evaluation agenda to accelerate the achievement of SDGs in the region. The speakers at the regional consultation include Daniele Lamarque (President, EES), Vlatko Danilov (Chair, Advisory Board, NESE), Alena Lappo (Chair, EvalYouth Europe) and Eval4Action co-leaders, Khalil Bitar (Chair, EvalYouth Global Network) and Marco Segone (Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office). Read EES’s latest blog for details on the consultation. UPDATE: The regional consultation recording is available here. For any questions, please email secretariat@europeanevaluation.org

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.

An all-day global #Eval4Action Tweetathon on accelerating action for influential evaluation will take place on 7 April 2021. Everyone can join this global conversation via their Twitter handle, using the hashtag #Eval4Action. The event marks one-year of the Eval4Action campaign, advancing global advocacy and multi-stakeholder partnerships to strengthen national evaluation capacities to accelerate the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals, in the Decade of Action. The Tweetathon will be kicked off by the campaign co-leaders, UNFPA Evaluation Office, EvalYouth Global Network and the Global Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation at 4 pm EDT on 6 April. Over the next 24 hours, seven regional Tweetathons will be held across the globe, every two hours on the GMT. Eval4Action co-leaders, international partners and all regional leaders will host the all-day Tweetathon, passing the Eval4Action Torch across the globe. The Tweetathon will conclude with the launch of the ‘Walk the Talk’ video drive, a follow up to the Eval4Action Commitment Drive held in October 2020. Together, the Tweetathon and Walk the Talk are a call to action, for renewed mobilization and commitment to deliver actions for influential evaluation, to accelerate the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals. Interested to learn how you can join and support the Tweetathon? Get more ideas. Spread the word on the Tweetathon by using the promotions pack.

On 7 April 2021, the Eval4Action campaign turned one! In its first year, Eval4Action has rallied a worldwide call for stronger coordination and partnerships for action towards influential evaluation. Launched when the COVID-19 pandemic was spreading across the globe, the campaign seized the moment to advocate for equitable and sustainable response and recovery from the pandemic that is backed by evidence. Through the year, the campaign put a spotlight on evaluation having the highest multiplier effect on sustainable development. In a short time, Eval4Action mobilized the global evaluation community in an unprecedented way. Today, the campaign’s 127 partners are co-creating and shaping evaluation advocacy in regions and countries, with young and emerging evaluators leading the way. Key milestones High-level launch by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem and UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, Ms. Jayathma Wickramanayake took place in June 2020. Marathon of nearly 70 motivational statements from the global evaluation community marked this event. Eval4Action was launched via regional consultations in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), Europe, Eurasia and Africa. The seventh regional consultation will take place in North America on 20 April 2021. The consultations have mobilized regional and national partnerships to build national evaluation capacities. In the Asia Pacific, the consultation led to the development of the regional evaluation strategy. Regional action plans are in development in MENA, LAC and Europe. In October 2020, a global call for institutional and individual commitments to action for influential evaluation was launched, to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs at all levels. The Drive resulted in 125 voluntary promises, including high-level commitments and those from young evaluators to increase action for influential evaluation. As a follow-up, the Walk the Talk video drive will take place in October 2021. The Eval4Action Twitter Chat was held with 27 co-panelists including all regional and international partners in May 2020. The tremendous outreach of the Chat brought worldwide visibility to Eval4Action and to evaluation being a key accelerator for the SDGs, especially during COVID-19. Building on this experience, an all-day #Eval4Action Tweetathon took place on 7 April 2021. The campaign launched Eval4Action blogs to feature ideas, reflections and knowledge on strengthening and utilizing evaluation as an accelerator to achieve the SDGs. Moving forward in its second year, the campaign has co-created its global agenda via a priority survey and an informal dialogue with partners. The campaign efforts are now focused on intensifying regional and national action for influential evaluation and strengthening multi-stakeholder partnerships for evaluation at all levels. To inspire a movement for transformational change, the values of shared ownership and participation continue to guide Eval4Action in 2021 and beyond.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regional consultation will focus on the region's commitment and future action plan towards Eval4Action. It will be held on 10 July 2020, at 4 PM Jerusalem time, 1 PM GMT. The interactive event is organized by EvalMENA (along with its member VOPEs) and EvalYouth MENA Chapter, jointly with UNFPA Evaluation Office and in partnership with UNFPA Arab States Regional Office. The regional consultation invites the evaluation community, young and emerging evaluators, policy makers, development partners and civil society to help shape the action plan for Eval4Action in the region. The speakers include Dr. Nuha Iter (President, EvalMENA), Sawsan Al-Zatari (Chair, EvalYouth MENA), Mohammad Qaryouti (Vice-President, IOCE), Marco Segone (Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office), Khalil Bitar (Chair, EvalYouth Global Network), Dr. Luay Shabaneh, (Regional Director, UNFPA Arab States) and Hon. Ibtissame Azzaoui (Member of Parliament). The interactive group discussions will be facilitated by a group of experienced facilitators from and beyond the region on the following topics: Role of EvalYouth MENA in Eval4Action Role of EvalMENA in Eval4Action Evaluation needs in the MENA region Strengthening national evaluation capacities National evaluation policies Role of VOPEs in VNRs Cross cutting themes: SDGs and COVID-19 Equity-focused and gender-responsive evaluations: Leaving no one behind Read an article by UNFPA Arab States Regional Office on Eval4Action and the MENA regional consultation. UPDATE: The regional consultation recording is available here. For other questions and clarification, please email evalyouthmena@gmail.com

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.

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.

The Asia Pacific Communication Hub (APC Hub) is the communication platform for evaluation endeavors in the region. It was initiated by the Asia Pacific Evaluation Association in the context of the Eval4Action campaign, to support regional communication and outreach on influential evaluation. With the launch of Eval4Action in Asia Pacific, several regional events and initiatives were launched to raise awareness on influential evaluation among the evaluation community and non-traditional actors. Due to COVID-19, nearly all events and initiatives were held virtually in 2020. This requires enhanced capacity to communicate and network effectively on digital platforms with the regional stakeholders. The APC Hub is managed by a team of volunteer young and emerging evaluators. It was formally launched in December 2020 during EvalVision Asia. The first undertaking of the Hub was to plan and manage communication for EvalVision Asia including creating content and managing social media platforms. The APC Hub also initiated and maintains the regional events calendar, resource database and provides support to partners on dissemination and promotions of evaluation focused initiatives. It also supports live coverage of virtual events on social media platforms. Read a brief introduction to the Hub. For details contact, Ana Erika Lareza at apea.coordinator@gmail.com. #APChub APC Hub team members

The first Asia Pacific Winter School for young and emerging evaluators (YEE) will take from 29 to 31 March 2021. The three day event will be facilitated by YEE champions from the EvalYouth Global Network and other internationally renowned and experienced evaluators. The Winter School’s practical and interactive sessions will focus on technical capacity building and career development of YEEs in the field of monitoring and evaluation. The Winter School will also serve as an opportunity for YEEs in Asia Pacific to network and actively contribute to EvalYouth Asia. Ninety applicants have expressed interest to join the Winter School, and the selection of 30 participants is underway. The virtual Winter School is being supported and led by EvalYouth Asia, Asia Pacific Evaluation Association (APEA) and Sri Lanka Evaluation Association (SLEvA) in partnership with Evaluation Community of India (ECOI), EvalYouth Sri Lanka, EvalYouth India, EvalYouth Afghanistan, EvalYouth Pakistan and the Center for Evaluation, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. For details contact Randika De Mel, EvalYouth Asia co-leader at rldemel@gmail.com.

The first national evaluation week in the Asia Pacific region will take place in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 5 to 9 July 2021. The EvalWeek2021 is jointly organized by Sri Lanka Evaluation Association (SLEvA), Parliament of Sri Lanka, Government of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation, University of Sri Jayewardenepura and EvalYouth Sri Lanka. Framed around the theme ‘Evaluation for a prosperous Sri Lanka’, the EvalWeek seeks to: Improve individual and institutional capacities to produce independent, credible, and high utility evaluations Improve policies and systems to plan, resource, implement, and use evaluations Encourage decision makers to actively support monitoring and evaluation at their respective institutions The five day event includes capacity building sessions, keynote speeches, panels and interactive sessions. The closing ceremony will be held at the Parliament of Sri Lanka. For further information, contact Dulmina Chamathkara, EvalWeek Manager at sleva.evalweek@gmail.com.

With its launch in April 2020, Eval4Action is mobilizing action for influential evaluation to accelerate the achievements of the Sustainable Development Goals. Today, the campaign has nearly 120 partners that are spearheading global, regional and national action for influential evaluation. For a brief recap of the campaign activities in 2020, watch this video. As the campaign moves forward in 2021, partners from all the regions shared their feedback and suggestions via the Eval4Action 2021 priority survey. This was followed by an informal dialogue with 40 global and regional Eval4Action leaders that came together to frame priorities for the campaign at the global and regional levels. The feedback received from the survey and the informal dialogue has been instrumental in shaping the global direction for Eval4Action. The campaign priorities are focused on intensifying regional and national action for influential evaluation and strengthening multi-stakeholder partnerships for evaluation at all levels. In particular, Eval4Action will focus on: Supporting the regions in the design and roll out of the regional action plans for influential evaluation Establishing regional communication hubs together with regional stakeholders Facilitating cross sharing among regions Follow up to the Eval4Action Commitment Drive, accelerating action for influential evaluation Strengthening outreach of the campaign in the global fora A brief paper summarizes the outcomes of the survey, the informal dialogue and Eval4Action priorities and plans for 2021.

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.

The year-end newsletter showcases Eval4Action's progress and achievements in 2020. 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.

Eval4Action regional partners in Asia Pacific, have launched EvalVision Asia, a series of events to celebrate the regional evaluation communities' accomplishments in 2020 and to plan for 2021. EvalVision Asia is led by Asia Pacific Evaluation Association, EvalYouth Asia, the Parliamentarians Forum for Development Evaluation - South Asia, and supported by the Asia Pacific Communication Hub. EvalVision Asia takes place from 10 to 22 December 2020. EvalVision Asia will also mark the release of key evaluation resources such as the launch of the regional evaluation strategy emerging from the Eval4Action regional consultation process, including the launch of the evaluation professionalization network with other regions. The details of the various events at EvalVision Asia are as follows: 10 December 2020 Launch of Asia Pacific regional evaluation strategy 11 December 2020 Asia Pacific regional dialogue on national evaluation policies and systems | Register 15 December 2020 Launch of Inter-Regional Initiative for Professionalization of Evaluation (IRIPE) and webinar on competencies for evaluators | Details | Register 18 December 2020 Webinar on introduction to the guide on use of evaluation for SDGs implementation, monitoring and reporting | Details | Register 19 December 2020 APEA General Assembly (for APEA members) 21 December 2020 First anniversary of EvalYouth Sri Lanka | Details | Register 22 December 2020 Launch of evaluation products following the regional strategy: Guide on use of evaluation for SDGs implementation, monitoring and reporting Virtual training course on managing evaluations Competencies for evaluators and guide for assessment Training module on career development in M&E, together with mentors' guide See the events flyer. To add all events directly to your google calendar, click here. Please reach out to apea.secretariat@gmail.com with any questions.

The Eval4Action sixth regional consultation will take place in Africa on 19 December 2020, organized by African Evaluation Association (AfrEA) and AfrEA YEE Network, in partnership with the UNFPA Evaluation Office, the EvalYouth Global Network, African Parliamentarians’ Network on Development Evaluation (APNODE) and Réseau Francophone de l'Evaluation (RFE). The regional consultation seeks to provide a platform for regional and national evaluators (and all interested stakeholders) to discuss synergy and partnerships to promote influential evaluations for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Made in Africa Evaluation (MAE). The event also marks the launch of Eval4Action in Africa. UPDATE: The regional consultation recording is available here. For further information, please reach out to afreayee@gmail.com

The fifth Eval4Action regional consultation will take place in Eurasia on 16 December 2020 on the theme “Promoting Evaluation in the World of Uncertainty”. The event is organized by the Eurasian Alliance for National Evaluation Associations and the EvalYouth Network in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EvalYouth ECA). The consultation seeks to provide a platform to regional and national evaluators and other stakeholders in the region to strengthen partnership and dialogue towards influential evaluation, in the context of COVID-19 and the Sustainable Development Goals. The speakers at the regional consultation include Dmytro Kondratenko (Chairman of the Coordination Council of Eurasian Alliance of National Evaluation Associations); Antonina Rishko-Porcescu (Co-chair, EvalYouth ECA); Natalia Nikitenko (Member of Parliament, Kyrgyzstan); Iryna Kravchuk (Ukrainian Evaluation Association) and Eval4Action co-leaders, Khalil Bitar (Chair, EvalYouth Global Network) and Marco Segone (Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office). Watch the event invitation video in Russian. The video invite in English is available below. UPDATE: The regional consultation recording is available here. For further details, please write to dmytro.kondratenko@gmail.com

The Asia Pacific regional dialogue on national evaluation policies and systems will be virtually held on 11 December 2020 from 11.00-14.00 IST. The event is jointly organized by Asia Pacific Evaluation Association, EvalYouth Asia and the Parliamentarians Forum for Development Evaluation - South Asia with support from UNFPA Asia Pacific Regional Office. Strengthening national evaluation policies and systems (NEPS) is one of the eight themes of the Asia Pacific Regional Evaluation Strategy, that was developed as a follow up to the Eval4Action consultation in the region in June 2020. The event seeks to accelerate NEPS in the region, while building upon the South Asia regional consultation (in 2014) and Asia Pacific regional consultation (in 2016) on this theme. The virtual forum will include insights from NEPS specialists, short technical sessions and presentations from countries that are preparing for NEPS. Watch the address by Marco Segone (Director, UNFPA Evaluation Office) at the event, detailing the importance of national evaluation policies & systems in the SDGs era. For additional information, contact apea.secretariat@gmail.com

Eval4Action partners in Asia Pacific have launched the regional evaluation strategy in order to advance the use of influential evaluation in the region toward the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals. The strategy was launched during the ongoing EvalVision Asia events. This is the first regional strategy among Eval4Action partners, emerging as a follow up to the Eval4Action regional consultation held in the Asia Pacific on 25 June 2020. The consultative strategy development process was led by Asia Pacific Evaluation Association, EvalYouth Asia and the Parliamentarians Forum for Development Evaluation. Following the regional consultation, a committee and an advisory group were established comprising of VOPEs, young and emerging evaluators, parliamentarians, evaluation network leaders, business community and development partners that contributed to the strategy development. The regional evaluation strategy is focused on advancing eight areas: professionalizing evaluation; building partnerships to strengthen evaluation capacity; strengthen community engagement in evaluation; promoting young and emerging evaluators; strengthening VOPEs; engaging parliamentarians for demand and use of evaluation; promoting national evaluation policies and systems and using evaluation in reporting of the SDGs. The strategy does not belong to any particular organization. Rather any organization or entity can use and implement the strategy based on their resources. Eval4Action regional partners will continue to coordinate partnerships and synergies in the implementation of the strategy. Check out the regional evaluation strategy and its related presentations. For further information, please email apea.secretariat@gmail.com

The 5th EvalYouth Virtual Conferenc, organized by EvalYouth Task Force III, took place on 21 November 2020 on the theme "Evaluation for Transformation and Social Change". The event was attended by about 170 participants. The virtual conference aimed to build the evaluation capabilities of young and emerging evaluators, and at the same time provide a relevant forum for the evaluation community and interested professionals at large. The conference included contributions from prominent thought leaders, scholars, and experts in the evaluation field including Marco Segone, Andrea Cook, Rakesh Mohan, Alison Evans, Donna Mertens, Thomas Archibald, Michele Tarsilla, Florencia Tateossian, Jyotsna Puri, and others. The conference also marked the 5th anniversary of the EvalYouth Global Network. The event concluded with the announcement of the first EvalYouth 'Transformative Evaluator' Award that was received by Marco Segone and Michael Quinn Patton. Real time translation in Arabic, French, Spanish and Russian were available at the virtual conference. The event recording can be viewed in five languages: English, Arabic, French, Spanish, Russian. Event programme