On 31 March 2023, the Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE) will organize a virtual learning event following the finalization of the project cluster evaluation on rural enterprise development.

The event will be an opportunity to share the main findings and lessons identified in this evaluation.

During the learning event, a panel discussion moderated by the lead evaluator will explore selected key issues, around the overarching topic of “How can IFAD contribute to improving the availability, quality and sustainability of business development services to support new and existing rural enterprises?” Specific questions may concern the subjects of support to start-up and existing enterprises; and effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of business development services.

The project cluster evaluation is a new evaluation product, the aim of which is to enhance the learning aspect of project-level evaluations through comparative analyses of a small number of projects sharing common features. This specific evaluation covered four projects that had a focus on rural entrepreneurship, enterprise development and employment creation, and that include support for non-financial services, access to finance and an enabling environment for rural micro and small enterprise development.