Independent evaluation sparks transformational change through organizational learning - IOE
Shanghai, 12 January 2023 – “The work of the Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE) is key for us. From a management perspective, one of the critical elements that independent evaluation provides is learning. For example, a 2018 corporate-level evaluation led by IOE spurred a big revamp of IFAD’s financial architecture, which led to the Fund’s current AA+ rating as well as a new way of allocating resources for borrowed funds”, affirmed IFAD President, Alvaro Lario, during the second lecture of the series hosted by the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) of the New Development Bank (NDB), on 12 January 2023.
The participation of the IFAD President and of the NDB President, Marcos Prado Troyjo, illustrated the deep commitment of both IFAD and NDB to cooperation across multilateral organizations. The Director of IOE, Indran A. Naidoo, also delivered remarks during the seminar, which was organized and moderated by the IEO Director General, Ashwani K. Muthoo. Members of NDB and IFAD senior management and staff attended the meeting, alongside members of the NDB Board of Directors.
In his keynote address, Mr. Lario shared insights and experiences on the role of independent evaluation in promoting organizational transformation and better results on the ground. Furthermore, the IFAD President also highlighted good practices and areas for consideration in the interactions between management and independent evaluation functions. The NDB President, Mr. Troyjo, further emphasized the importance and added value of evaluative work for multilateral organizational development.
“The multilateral development world has had a new member, the NDB, for the past seven and a half years. We have grown a lot since our establishment. As we continue grow and mature as an organization, it is absolutely key to have quality evaluation to help us improve day after day. In this regard, I congratulate IFAD’s IOE for conducting transformational independent evaluation that has contributed to institutional changes and reforms over the years”, stated Mr. Troyjo.
Drawing from the successful experience of IOE in generating lessons that have sparked transformational change through organizational learning, Dr. Naidoo presented the pillars of IFAD’s Evaluation Policy. These include usefulness, impartiality and credibility, transparency, evaluability, value for money and cost effectiveness, and partnership, consultation and collaboration. In the same context, the IOE Director listed the key facets of the Office’s first multi-year evaluation strategy.
“Based on our experience, elements that I would recommend looking at are how evaluation topics are selected, ensure that evaluation products are balanced, strengthen engagement with management, and build evaluation capacity to the extent possible in order to raise the bar”, explained Dr. Naidoo.
Through the evaluative lenses, the seminar offered an opportunity for cross-fertilization of views, and provided a stimulus for both NDB and IFAD to explore opportunities for knowledge exchange, co-financing and other forms of partnerships. Event participants welcomed these discussions, especially given that IFAD portfolios in most NDB member countries – such as Bangladesh, Brazil, China and India – are amongst the largest of the Fund.
“The spirit of the times we are now in stresses how crucial the work of IFAD is. That is why it is so important to have this opportunity to exchange. If we were to juxtapose our two institutions and look at the strategic objectives, we would see many overlaps. It is the case for environmental sustainability, climate resilience and market participation. IFAD’s emphasis on support to poor rural people is a shared development objective by many of our projects. I hope that his dialogue serves as a starting point to strengthen collaboration between our organizations”, noted Mr. Troyjo.
The IEO Lecture Series was introduced in mid-2022, with the broad aim of fostering an evaluation, results and learning culture across the Bank and amongst its main stakeholders. It also serves as a key platform to share thoughts and ideas on topics of high relevance for accelerating the SDGs.
For further information, please contact Alexander Voccia [here]
The participation of the IFAD President and of the NDB President, Marcos Prado Troyjo, illustrated the deep commitment of both IFAD and NDB to cooperation across multilateral organizations. The Director of IOE, Indran A. Naidoo, also delivered remarks during the seminar, which was organized and moderated by the IEO Director General, Ashwani K. Muthoo. Members of NDB and IFAD senior management and staff attended the meeting, alongside members of the NDB Board of Directors.
In his keynote address, Mr. Lario shared insights and experiences on the role of independent evaluation in promoting organizational transformation and better results on the ground. Furthermore, the IFAD President also highlighted good practices and areas for consideration in the interactions between management and independent evaluation functions. The NDB President, Mr. Troyjo, further emphasized the importance and added value of evaluative work for multilateral organizational development.
“The multilateral development world has had a new member, the NDB, for the past seven and a half years. We have grown a lot since our establishment. As we continue grow and mature as an organization, it is absolutely key to have quality evaluation to help us improve day after day. In this regard, I congratulate IFAD’s IOE for conducting transformational independent evaluation that has contributed to institutional changes and reforms over the years”, stated Mr. Troyjo.
Drawing from the successful experience of IOE in generating lessons that have sparked transformational change through organizational learning, Dr. Naidoo presented the pillars of IFAD’s Evaluation Policy. These include usefulness, impartiality and credibility, transparency, evaluability, value for money and cost effectiveness, and partnership, consultation and collaboration. In the same context, the IOE Director listed the key facets of the Office’s first multi-year evaluation strategy.
“Based on our experience, elements that I would recommend looking at are how evaluation topics are selected, ensure that evaluation products are balanced, strengthen engagement with management, and build evaluation capacity to the extent possible in order to raise the bar”, explained Dr. Naidoo.
Through the evaluative lenses, the seminar offered an opportunity for cross-fertilization of views, and provided a stimulus for both NDB and IFAD to explore opportunities for knowledge exchange, co-financing and other forms of partnerships. Event participants welcomed these discussions, especially given that IFAD portfolios in most NDB member countries – such as Bangladesh, Brazil, China and India – are amongst the largest of the Fund.
“The spirit of the times we are now in stresses how crucial the work of IFAD is. That is why it is so important to have this opportunity to exchange. If we were to juxtapose our two institutions and look at the strategic objectives, we would see many overlaps. It is the case for environmental sustainability, climate resilience and market participation. IFAD’s emphasis on support to poor rural people is a shared development objective by many of our projects. I hope that his dialogue serves as a starting point to strengthen collaboration between our organizations”, noted Mr. Troyjo.
The IEO Lecture Series was introduced in mid-2022, with the broad aim of fostering an evaluation, results and learning culture across the Bank and amongst its main stakeholders. It also serves as a key platform to share thoughts and ideas on topics of high relevance for accelerating the SDGs.
For further information, please contact Alexander Voccia [here]
RESOURCES
- To access the event pages, please click here and here.
- To access the presentation delivered by Dr. Indran A. Naidoo, please click here.
- To watch the recording of the complete seminar, please click here.
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