As 2018 comes to an end, looking back over the last 12 months and reflecting on the year that was, one could conclude that for the Independent Development Evaluation (IDEV) at the African Development Bank (AfDB) 2018 was a good year.
We completed and delivered 15 evaluations to AfDB Management and/or Board of Directors:
- 4 Project Cluster evaluations: Urban Water Supply and Sanitation; Rural Water Supply and Sanitation; Program Based Operations in Energy; and Program Based Operations in Private Sector Environment
- 2 Thematic evaluations: the evaluation of the Congo Basin Forest Fund and the evaluation of AfDB's Program Based Operations (2012-2017)
- 3 Corporate evaluations: Quality at Entry of African Development Bank Group Operations (2012-2017); Quality of Supervision and Exit of African Development Bank Group Operations (2012-2017); and Quality Assurance Across the Project Cycle of the African Development Bank Group (2012-2017)
- 3 Country Strategy and Program Evaluations: Cabo Verde, Malawi and Mauritius
- 1 Mid-term Evaluation of Guinea Bissau Country Strategy (2015-2019)
- 1 Evaluation Synthesis of Bank Lines of Credit
- 1 Comparative Study of Sanctions Systems
We launched the first IDEV capitalization workshops where staff from various Bank complexes and IDEV evaluators discussed evaluation findings and recommendations, to draw lessons learned (what worked, what did not work and why) in order to guide future activities of the Bank. IDEV held three workshops to discuss: (i) two project cluster evaluations of AfDB-funded rural electrification and power interconnection projects; (ii) two project cluster evaluations on Program Based Operations (PBOs); and (iii) a project cluster evaluation on Agricultural Value Chains Development (AVCD). IDEV also collaborated with the Congo Basin Forest Fund (CBFF) Secretariat to co-organize a knowledge event on lessons learned from the CBFF evaluation.
This year, we also hosted the biennial AfDB Evaluation Week focused on Strengthening Development Impact in Africa. The three-day global knowledge event was attended by over 450 participants from the evaluation and development communities, governments, the private sector, civil society, the media and academia.
We published two editions of our quarterly magazine Evaluation Matters on Building Supply and Demand for Evaluation in Africa. Volume 1 looked at the critical role played by evaluation in the effective implementation of good governance structures in Africa, in promoting accountability, learning, development effectiveness, and sustained and rapid economic growth; while Volume 2 showcased experiences from various evaluation stakeholders, focusing on peer learning and different views on building the supply and demand for evaluation at country and institutional levels.
We continued our efforts to promote Evaluation Capacity Development at the African Development Bank and in Regional Member Countries by organizing trainings for IDEV staff and by supporting the African Parliamentarians’ Network on Development Evaluation (APNODE), the Strengthening National Evaluation Systems (SNES) initiative, the Evaluation Platform for Regional African Development Institutions (EPRADI) and the Twende Mbele peer learning partnership.
Throughout the year we contributed our evaluative knowledge as well as expertise at major international conferences, notably the Asian Development Bank Knowledge Forum; the American Evaluation Association conference; the 13th European Evaluation Society Biennial Conference; the Evidence 2018 conference and EvalColombo 2018. Furthermore, we organized three webinars targeted to AfDB evaluators and operations staff.
Finally, our year was also marked by the retirement of AfDB Evaluator General Rakesh Nangia, who joined the Bank in 2012 and who was instrumental in formulating and implementing AfDB’s first independent evaluation strategy.
Looking ahead, 2019 promises to be an exciting year. About 20 evaluation products are ongoing, and we expect a new Evaluator General and two new division managers to join the team and help drive the implementation of the IDEV 2019-2021 Work Program.