"Using Innovative Approaches to Development Evaluation"

The Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD organized an international conference on Information and Communication Technologies for Evaluation (ICT4Eval), which took place on 6 and 7 June 2017 at IFAD headquarters.

Evaluators across all regions of the world face recurring challenges in the field. Lack of reliable monitoring and evaluation data and limited resources are two of the more common obstacles. ICTs used in development are offering new methods for gathering, analysing and disseminating data, and are changing the way evaluations are conducted.

The conference discussed the latest innovative approaches to the use of ICTs in evaluation and featured best practices that have emerged from the experiences of development organizations and the private sector across the world. The conference confirmed that recent innovations in ICTs, which are rapidly changing approaches to development, have demonstrable benefits to the intersecting fields of evaluation and rural transformation.

The event was organized around three main topics:

1. ICTs applied to data collection

2. ICTs applied to data analysis

3. ICTs applied to data dissemination

In parallel to the conference, a Tech Fair was held on 7 June at IFAD headquarters. The fair gave participants an opportunity to get a closer look at the technologies and services explored at the conference. Read more

The conference programme included 4 panel sessions, 15 breakout sessions, 36 speakers and 12 tech fair exhibitors. The event gathered over 200 participants with expertise in development evaluation practice and application of ICTs in development and/or evaluation, and innovators pushing the boundaries of the use of technology in data collection, analysis and dissemination. They were experts and technical staff from the United Nations Evaluation Group; the Evaluation Cooperation Group of the multilateral development banks; bilateral and multilateral development and humanitarian organizations; the private sector; academic institutions; non-governmental organizations; foundations; think tanks; and national-level counterparts from evaluation and policy institutions. New and innovative experiences and knowledge were shared over the two days of the conference and we trust that participants left the event with very useful and concrete takeaways. 

For more details, please read the concept note and see the detailed programme.

ICT4Eval international conference secretariat: [email protected].