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Evaluation in DFID

Evaluation helps enhance both DFID’s accountability to Parliament and the public and its impact in reducing world poverty. It identifies how results are achieved (or not) so that lessons can be learnt for the future.

Evaluation Department works towards the following interrelated objectives in DFID and beyond to:

  • produce high quality, policy relevant evaluation studies
  • promote the use of evaluation knowledge for better decision making
  • engage in more and better evaluation partnerships to support harmonisation of evaluation approaches
  • build increased evaluation capacity and better evaluation systems

Evaluation Department's programme includes:

  • formative studies addressing new aid instruments and emerging themes
  • ex-post evaluations policy-oriented studies
  • country programme level studies and examination of themes (e.g. gender)
  • sectors (e.g. basic education) and
  • performance management quality assurance reviews.

The aim is to determine relevance and fulfillment of objectives and assess developmental efficiency, effectiveness, impact and sustainability.

View the Evaluation Department Forward Work Programme 2008/2009pdf(55 kb)

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New Independent Advisory Committee on Development Impact

An Independent Advisory Committee on Development Impact (IACDI) is being set up to help DFID evaluate the impact of UK aid and will also advise DFID on the overall strategy, approach and priorities being adopted in its evaluation work. The role of the committee will be to assure the independence of the evaluation function in DFID and the use of evaluation results to enhance delivery and impact of UK development assistance. The Chair of IACDI will prepare an annual report to the Secretary of State. This report, and the Secretary of State's reply, will be publicly available.

The UK Government is committed to independent and high quality evaluation of international development assistance. As the aid budget increases we want to continue to ensure that resources for development are used effectively and are directed where they can make the most difference to the lives of the world’s poorest people. Although international development is already subject to extensive scrutiny, we have decided to strengthen the independence of our evaluations in a way which complements and adds value to existing systems.

The Committee comprises a Chair (David Peretz) and six committee members, the latest member being Joe Abbey (from Ghana). The Committee will draw on high-level evaluation expertise both from the' UK and internationally. Short biographies can be found here

The Terms of Reference for the IACDIpdf(24 kb)

Read the minutes of::

Related Links

Contact Evaluation Department at ev-dept@dfid.gov.uk

Last updated: 3 July 2008

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