PERSPECTIVES ON IMPACT EVALUATION:
Approaches to assessing development effectiveness

An international conference for policy-makers, program managers, evaluators, sponsors and other stakeholders in evaluation and development

Sunday 29 March – Thursday 2 April 2009
Semiramis InterContinental Hotel, Cairo, Egypt

www.impactevaluation2009.org
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Overview
How do we know when ‘development’ is truly successful? How can evaluation contribute to development in Africa and elsewhere in the developing world? What can different evaluation approaches tell us about which policies, programs and projects work, why, for whom and under what conditions? How can evaluations best be conducted and used to inform policies, strategies and interventions that can benefit the many millions in Africa and elsewhere who live with little hope for a better future?

This conference brings together all those with a keen interest in how evaluation can address the complex development challenges facing the world today. Participants will come from many disciplines, sectors and worldviews. They will share diverse perspectives and experiences with a view to crafting new ways of collaborating and increasing the pool of knowledge about effectiveness, and ways of using this knowledge to improve policies and programs.

Amidst the demand for managing for results, evidence-based policies and increasingly integrated development interventions, the spotlight has to be on outcomes and on impact ( defined by the DAC Evaluation Network as 'positive and negative, primary and secondary long-term effects produced by a development intervention, directly or indirectly, intended or unintended').

For this conference we use the term ‘impact evaluation’ in a broad sense, not limited to the interpretation in a specific discipline or approach. Impact evaluations are studies which concern themselves with determining and understanding the short, medium and long term outcomes and/or impacts of projects, programs and policies. They include the outcomes and impacts of collaborative efforts - partnerships and networks involving many stakeholders and multiple multi-level activities. Impact evaluation design should reflect the characteristics of the interventions being evaluated, and the specific context of each evaluation.

The conference will cover current challenges in impact evaluation - including engaging different stakeholder perspectives in defining, monitoring and evaluating impacts; gathering evidence about long-term and hard to measure impacts; improving analyses which attribute changes in impacts to the intervention; understanding the role of interventions and other factors in producing impacts; and managing impact evaluations for use and influence.

The conference will have an international audience yet a strong African focus. It is an opportunity for African policy-makers, practitioners, sponsors and evaluators to come together to re-examine the methods, conceptual frameworks and paradigms that guide impact evaluation practice. This approach is in line with the statement released at the Fourth AfrEA Conference in Niamey (2007), which urged stakeholders to ensure that the foundations for Africa-rooted and Africa-led evaluation are strengthened by focusing on African values and ways of constructing knowledge.

The conference will be designed to inform future evaluation practice and policy. Background studies will be commissioned to inform deliberations and space made for facilitated discussions to provide opportunities for networking, reflection and synthesis of information. Sessions will propose concrete outputs and steps to move the field forward after the conference.

Structure
The event will comprise 2.5 days of professional development workshops followed by 2.5 days of the main conference.

There will be five parallel streams of pre-conference workshops (a total of 15-18 workshops) to improve participants’ skills and knowledge in key aspects of impact evaluation. The conference will have a combination of plenary sessions and five streams of parallel sessions that may take the form of paper presentations, panel discussions, think-tanks and roundtables.

ConferenceThemes

1. Improving development effectiveness: the role of impact evaluation

 Impact evaluation is one of a number of approaches in the evaluation toolbox. When is it appropriate to conduct an impact evaluation, and in the context of which other evaluation approaches should it be used? How important and effective has it been, and can it be in improving development policies and strategies? What particular interventions are most amenable to different impact evaluation approaches? When would impact evaluation be inappropriate and what can it perhaps not tell us? What are the particular challenges of conducting rigorous impact studies in Africa and other low-income regions?

2. Impact evaluation: Approaches and methods

The workshops and conference will encompass the full range of approaches to, and perspectives on impact evaluation. Presentations in this theme will explicitly lay out one or more method or approach, often through the use of case studies. Presenters are particularly encouraged to compare and contrast different approaches, identifying the potential for mixed methods and combined approaches. The conference will provide an opportunity for discussing ideas on the rigorous evaluation of new approaches to development, such as partnership-based programs. It will also encourage innovation in methodology that draws from the rich pool of knowledge in diverse disciplines often unrelated to evaluation practice. Presentations which examine the concepts of rigor and credible evidence in impact evaluation, as well as the issue of quality standards in impact evaluation are also welcome.

3. Institutionalizing impact evaluation : demand, production and use

These presentations will examine the experiences and challenges of African and other developing country governments, development agencies, civil society organizations and the private sector in managing, doing, commissioning, resourcing and using impact evaluation, monitoring impacts, and developing an organisational culture that values and supports the necessary organizational learning and accountability conditions for effective impact evaluation. Presentations will include a range of experiences from developing countries, agencies and organizations which have explored a range of approaches to institutionalising impact evaluation. Country governments and civil society organizations just embarking on this process will also be included.

4. Achieving influence: reporting, outreach, learning and policy impact

The purpose of impact studies is to enhance development effectiveness through better policies, programs, institutional arrangements, partnerships and networks, including enhanced civil society awareness, action and engagement in impact evaluation aimed at social change from grassroots to national, regional and international level. Presentations under this theme will discuss how the context, production process and dissemination strategy for impact evaluations can increase their policy and institutional impact (both within and outside the commissioning agency) and how civil society engagement in the evaluation of impact can contribute to improved wellbeing and sustainability. Presentations on how to promote the use of impact evaluation by a range of stakeholders are also welcome.

5. Capacity building for impact evaluation

Policy impact will be enhanced by ensuring that impact evaluations are demand-led by the full range of stakeholders, including citizens, parliaments, civil society organizations, governments and development agencies. For this to be the case, further capacity development is required. Presentations in these sessions will highlight successful experiences in building capacity, and provide information on the resources available for capacity development. The focus should be on the development of impact evaluation approaches that are rigorous yet practical and useful given the real world constraints and demands of development.

6. Impact evaluations of policies, programs, projects, partnerships and networks

These presentations will present findings from actual impact evaluations of policies, programs, projects, partnerships and networks, and synthetic reviews of such studies. Case studies are expected to demonstrate the application of a range of different approaches.

Conference Bursaries for Developing Country Participants CLOSED
If you are a national of a developing country (low or middle income country as given by the World Bank list you may be eligible to receive a bursary to cover the costs of your participation in the conference.

This bursary will cover economy airfare, visa and ground transportation, hotel, and conference fee. Preference is given to those actively engaged in impact evaluation, and who have submitted a contribution to the conference. Applicants are expected to attend the conference, and a full program of professional development workshops.

If you apply for a scholarship you do not need to register separately using the registration system on the conference website. If you are not selected for a bursary you will be informed by January 20, 2009 so that you still have time to register for the conference if you still wish to attend.