Unpacking the "Value" in the Value-for-Money of Evaluation
The value of independent evaluation goes beyond cash equations
The value of independent evaluation goes beyond cash equations
By: Caroline HeiderMy blog in July on Value-for-Money generated a lot of feedback. Many thanks for the thoughtful comments and suggestions. The sense I got from the comments is that we need to unpack the value proposition of evaluation before we can contrast it with the money – cost and price – part of the equation.
Theory of Change
The value of evaluation lies in helping to improve development results. Our aim is that evaluation leads to better informed decisions and actions before and during the life-cycle of an intervention, which in turn results in greater benefits at a lower cost.
The Value of Independent Evaluation
The value of independent evaluation to an institution like the World Bank Group lies in its transparency, accountability, and learning. The importance of independence was discussed in a previous blog.
Specific evaluations add value by:
Realizing the Value of an Evaluation
Value is not generated by simply producing information. It’s the changes in behavior, practices and policies that matter. That means we have to reach out and share lessons and knowledge in ways that get absorbed and influence behaviors. We are fortunate to have the resources to do that and have committed ourselves to revving up our work on this front. To know whether we succeed, we have an established system to track the implementation of recommendations over time. Our results framework also includes an external assessment of the actual use and impact of our evaluations.
Estimating the Value-Added
But, our measures do not quantify the expected value improvements that should follow from evaluations. How would we make this work? For example, in our evaluation The Big Business of Small Enterprises we found that the WBG spends $3 billion annually on targeted support to small and medium sized enterprises. But only 34 percent of the interventions state whether they address market failures and only 13 percent provide evidence to that effect. And while the overall outcome ratings of these projects is positive, we also found that few projects had quantified data and evidence to demonstrate the extent to which SME development had been helped and what wider economic effects this has had. Assuming that as a result of our evaluation, targeted SME interventions would have a clear line-of-sight on the market failures they will address and how this will affect the sector’s growth and multiplier effects, the value of the evaluation could be enormous.
Does it translate into a number, a dollar amount? Only if we start seeing data that helps quantify outcomes. And, let’s not forget the intangible value of more or better information.
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