Evaluation Methodologies For Aid In Conflict

Knowledge and rigorous evidence around the role of external development partners in situations of conflict and fragility is still lacking. There is little accountability for the billions in aid being spent in places like Afghanistan, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This book analyses evaluation theory and practice in order to help fill this knowledge gap and advocates a realistic and rigorous approach to evaluating international engagement. Through a series of case studies, this book highlights both the promise, and potential pitfalls, of taking a more evaluative approach to understanding aid in conflict regions. These illustrate the methodological and analytical approach taken by researchers working to understand the results and effectiveness of conflict prevention and peacebuilding support. While well-grounded in current theoretical and methodological debates, the book provides valuable practical information by examining how and why different choices were made in the context of each evaluation. The book shows what future steps may be envisaged to further strengthen evaluations of support for conflict prevention and peacebuilding. The analysis draws on a wealth of perspectives and voices to provide researchers and students in development studies and conflict and peace studies as well as development evaluators with a deep and broad understanding of evaluation methods and approaches.

Knowledge and rigorous evidence around the role of external development partners in situations of conflict and fragility is still lacking. There is little accountability for the billions in aid being spent in places like Afghanistan, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This book analyses evaluation theory and practice in order to help fill this knowledge gap and advocates a realistic and rigorous approach to evaluating international engagement. Through a series of case studies, this book highlights both the promise, and potential pitfalls, of taking a more evaluative approach to understanding aid in conflict regions. These illustrate the methodological and analytical approach taken by researchers working to understand the results and effectiveness of conflict prevention and peacebuilding support. While well-grounded in current theoretical and methodological debates, the book provides valuable practical information by examining how and why different choices were made in the context of each evaluation. The book shows what future steps may be envisaged to further strengthen evaluations of support for conflict prevention and peacebuilding. The analysis draws on a wealth of perspectives and voices to provide researchers and students in development studies and conflict and peace studies as well as development evaluators with a deep and broad understanding of evaluation methods and approaches.

Evaluation is a key tool in improving the quality and effectiveness of development co-operation. The Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Working Party in Aid Evaluation is the only international forum where bilateral and multilateral evaluation ...

The guidance presented in this book provides step-by-step guidance on the core steps in planning, carrying out and learning from evaluation, as well as some basic principles on programme design and management.

"Armed conflict has become the overarching challenge for foreign policy and puts development and humanitarian assistance at considerable risk. How to deal with the situation? What to do? A milestone in its field, this guidebook provides conceptual thought and practical support. It leads both practitioner and academic reader through a planning and evaluation process that helps the user to better design development, humanitarian and peacebuilding interventions in conflict prone areas of the world. Basedin the state of the art in theory and practice of peacebuilding, planning and evaluation, the book introduces the "Aid for Peace" approach and walks the user through a systematic and comprehensive step by step process. The user understands how to analyze and anticipate conflict dynamics and peacebuilding needs, plan new interventions and evaluate existing ones, map her or his own intervention and assess its relevance for peacebuilding, assess the effects of interventions on peace and conflict by making hypotheses of change explicit and operational, integrate the conflict and peace lens into standard planning and evaluation procedures and criteria as well as organizational structures, combine a strategic with a process understanding in building a vision for peacebuilding for better contributing to conflict transformation and social change. Written for a broad readership, "Aid for Peace" leads to the creation of an appropriate policy, project or program design for working in conflict zones."--P. 4 of cover.

Two billion people live in countries where development outcomes are affected by fragility, conflict and violence. The World Bank estimates that by 2030, up to two-thirds of the global extreme poor will be living in fragile and conflict-affected situations, making it evident that without intensified action, global poverty goals will not be met. Evaluation - like development aid itself - can unintentionally exacerbate tensions in ways that negatively affect conflict-affected populations if care is not taken to develop and integrate conflict sensitivity into the evaluation's design and approaches. This book is a guide to designing, managing and conducting evaluations in fragile and conflict-affected contexts. Such contexts may present challenges for evaluation that, if not properly addressed or mitigated, can adversely affect the validity and results of the evaluation. Mitigating these challenges can entail significant effort, and can sometimes require redefining the direction, purpose or scope of the evaluation. This book is an initiative of IDEAS. It builds upon the knowledge and practical experience of evaluation professionals of various organizations and regions, thus showing a diversity of perspectives and experiences. Hur Hassnain provided overall leadership and management in writing and developing the book. The book's co-authors were Anupam Anand, Inga-Lill Aronsson, Sarah Davies, Gabrielle Duffy, Lauren Kelly, Wanda Krause, Keiko Kuji-Shikatani, Marco Lorenzoni, Rhiannon McHugh, Emma Rotondo, Wendy Rowe, Simona Somma, Melinda Sutherland and Serge Eric Yakeu. Reviews and Endorsements: - This book is both important and timely. Use the wisdom and insights in this book to enhance your work on behalf of all of us. Michael Quinn Patton, Utilization-Focused Evaluation & Blue Marble Evaluation - Many of the elements included in this book will have an immediate purpose in strengthening the work of my own evaluation function at the WFP. Andrea Cook, World Food Programme - This publication is a welcome initiative reminding development practitioners that during conflicts and pandemics and in fragile circumstances in general, M&E matter more than ever. Marvin Taylor-Dormond, Asian Development Bank - The wealth of examples from the field, combined with the extensive review of applicable evaluation methods will be found invaluable by both new and experienced evaluators. Michael Bamberger - I encourage development practitioners to read this guidance. Fragility and conflict are among the most serious hurdles to achieving the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. Fabrizio Felloni, International Fund for Agricultural Development - This book provides useful advice from the early stages of understanding power and conflict to the final stages of reporting findings, with practical information about choosing methods and protecting staff and communities. Patricia Rogers, BetterEvaluation - This is an important, useful book to produce good-quality evidence while making real-world choices along the way about costs, data, rigour and methods. Jyotsna Puri, IFAD - I highly recommend it. Linda Morra Imas, IPDET - I invite all VOPEs to disseminate and promote the use of this book. Silvia Salinas Mulder, IOCE - This book is a great resource. Asela Kalugampitiya - This book is an important step in enhancing our repertoire for designing and conducting meaningful evaluations in challenging contexts defined by FCV. Juha I. Uitto, Global Environment Facility - This book is essential for all evaluators, especially, YEEs. Khalil Bitar - This book fulfils a long-standing need to provide technical insights on conducting evaluations in contexts of fragility, conflict and violence. Marco Segone, United Nations Population Fund & EvalPartners

This book covers the design, evaluation, and learning for international interventions aiming to promote peace. More specifically, it reconceptualises this space by critically analysing mainstream approaches – presenting both conceptual and empirical content. This volume offers a variety of original and insightful contributions to the debates grappling with the adoption of complexity thinking. Insights from Complexity Thinking for Peacebuilding Practice and Evaluation addresses the core dilemma that practitioners have to confront: how to function in situations that are fast changing and complex, when equipped with tools designed for neither? How do we reconcile the tension between the use of linear causal logic and the dynamic political transitions that interventions are meant to assist? Readers will be given a rare opportunity to superimpose the latest conceptual innovations with the latest case study applications and from a diverse spectrum of organisational vantage points. This provides the myriad practitioners and consultants in this space with invaluable insights as to how to improve their trade craft, while ensuring policy makers and the accompanying research/academic industry have clearer guidance and innovative thinking. This edited volume provides critically innovative offerings for the audiences that make up this broad area’s practitioners, researchers/academics/educators, and consultants, as well as policy makers.