Evaluation in the era of the SDGs

This Third Quarter 2017 issue of Evaluation Matters is dedicated to evaluating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It discusses the consequences of the paradigm shift from the MDGs to the SDGs and what the world of evaluation should do differently in this new era. Evaluation is acknowledged in Agenda 2030 as crucial to the follow-up and review processes for SDG progress, and evaluators can, and should, make a real difference to SDG achievements by helping point in the right direction for investment efforts.

Contributors to this edition agree that evaluators should tackle the over-arching prerogative of eradicating extreme poverty, encompassing the moral principle that no-one, no group and no country should be left behind. But are evaluators sufficiently equipped to address the broader set of issues? Are the current OECD/DAC evaluation criteria capable of addressing the complexity of the SDGs? Contributors from across the development spectrum voice their views on how evaluation can help Africa meet its SDG objectives, with a focus on their domain of expertise.