Development cooperation evaluation reports: Project and programme evaluations

Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland commissioned an external mid-term evaluation of the Community-led Accelerated Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Project in Ethiopia, Phase IV (COWASH IV) in 2023.

External Review and Evaluation Services of Forestry Programmes in Tanzania (ERET) team was contracted for three years (2020-2023) to conduct annual reviews and Mid-Term Evaluations of three forestry programmes in Tanzania: Forestry and Value Chain Development Programme (FORVAC), Participatory Plantation Forestry Programme phase 2 (PFP2), and Tree Outgrowers Support Programme (TOSP). The synthesis report presents the main findings and recommendations from the previous ERET reviews and provides recommendations for the current programmes as well as for the possible future cooperation in the forestry sector in Tanzania.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and the Federal Ministry of Education of Ethiopia commissioned a Mid-term Review of the technical assistance related to General Education Quality Improvement Programme for Equity (GEQIP-E).

Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland commissioned an external mid-term term review of the second phase of the land management project in Ethiopia (REILA II) in 2020.

External Review and Evaluation Services of Forestry Programmes in Tanzania (ERET) team is contracted for three years (2020-2023) to conduct annual reviews and Mid-Term Evaluations of three forestry programmes in Tanzania: Forestry and Value Chain Development Programme (FORVAC), Participatory Plantation Forestry Programme phase 2 (PFP2), and Tree Outgrowers Support Programme (TOSP). ERET aims to facilitate constant learning within and between the three programmes, and is also part of their risk management.

The evaluation is a part of a series of evaluations conducted on projects implemented with the terminated Concessional Credit instrument. These evaluations support the programming, development, and management of the Public Sector Investment Facility (PIF) instrument.

The External Review and Evaluation Team (ERET) is contracted for three years (2020-2023) to conduct Mid-Term Evaluations (MTE) and annual reviews of three forestry programmes: Forestry and Value Chain Development Programme (FORVAC), Participatory Plantation Forestry Programme phase 2 (PFP2), and Tree Outgrowers Support Programme (TOSP).

The evaluation covers a two-year period from January 2018 to December 2019 and provides an overall independent assessment of the performance of the PEGASE Direct Financial Support (DFS) paying particular attention to its results measured against expected objectives and the reasons underpinning such results. It provides key lessons learned, conclusions and related recommendations in order to improve current and future PEGASE programmes.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland commissioned the Ex-Post Evaluation of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project in Western Nepal (RWSSP-WN, 2008-2019) and the Final Evaluation of the Rural Village Water Resources Management Project (RVWRMP, 2006-2022). The evaluation covered all three phases of the RVWRMP and two phases of the RWSSP-WN.

The evaluation is a part of a series of evaluations conducted on projects implemented with the terminated Concessional Credit instrument. These evaluations support the programming, development, and management of the Public Sector Investment Facility (PIF) instrument.

The evaluation presents the results for five Institutional Cooperation Instrument (ICI) projects implemented in four South Asian countries (Afghanistan, Bhutan, India and Nepal) since 2011.

The independent evaluation of the seventh replenishment round of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) evaluates its results. The evaluation covers the years 2018-2021 and brings together the results of 34 separate evaluations conducted during that time, taking into account the final evaluations of 1,800 completed projects.

The External Review and Evaluation Team (ERET) is contracted for three years (2020-2023) to conduct annual reviews and Mid-Term Evaluations (MTE) of three forestry programmes: Forestry and Value Chain Development Programme (FORVAC), Participatory Plantation Forestry Programme phase 2 (PFP2), and Tree Outgrowers Support Programme (TOSP).

The overall objective of the Project was to extend the electricity grid to rural and peri-urban areas with the aim of reducing poverty. The project has been financed partly by national funds from Honduras and external funding provided by Finland. This evaluation was expected to enable the MFA to assess: 1) Whether the Project was implemented in an appropriate and efficient way; 2) How well it achieved the targets and goals laid out in the Project plan; 3) How sustainable the outcomes of the Project are, including any long-term development impacts; 4) To provide the MFA with a set of lessons learned that can be used in further developing the PIF funding instrument, which has replaced the concessional credit –instrument. This evaluation is a part of a series of evaluations conducted on projects implemented with the terminated Concessional Credit instrument.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs commissioned an impact evaluation on environmental and natural resources projects in Zambia. The objective of the evaluation was to give an independent view on the impact and sustainability of the projects as well as to a general assessment on Finland’s support to environmental and natural resources sectors.

FUTF is EUR 6 million energy efficiency, renewal energy and innovative technologies project in Ukraine. NEFCO commissioned nn independent evaluation of the project at the end of 2020. The project period was originally 2018-2021, but due to delays, it was agreed to extend the implementation until end of 2022.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs commissioned an independent mid-term review on Learning Together project in Ukraine.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs supports the development communications and global education projects of Finnish civil society organizations. The funding instrument was for the first time evaluated in summer 2020, with the purpose to assess how the development communications and global education support has achieved its goal of raising awareness of development issues in Finland, how the support has involved and activated citizens to work on development issues, and how this has contributed to the achievement of Finland's development policy objectives.

The purpose of the review was to assess the relevance and effectiveness of International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) in supporting the objectives of Finland’s international human rights and development policies. Special emphasis was placed on how INGOs tackle barriers to realization of human rights through advocacy, and in particular, to systemic challenges.

The external final evaluation of MIDA FINNSOM IV assessed the effectiveness, impact and sustainability of the intervention, as well as generate recommendations for future similar programmes.

The evaluation covers the design and performance of three Institutional Cooperation Instrument (ICI) projects that were implemented in Tanzania during the years 2015-2018.

The Evaluation of the Training of Chemical Weapons Verification project was done in 2019. The training is provided by the Finnish Institute for Verification of the Chemical Weapons Convention (VERIFIN). The evaluation found that in overall the training provided by VERIFIN is of the highest standard, incorporating excellent pedagogy, and highly appreciated by all who train with the organization.

Ministry for Foreign Affairs commissioned an independent Synthesis Evaluation of the forestry and mapping projects that were implemented in Lao PDR with financial support from Government of Finland.

This mid-term evaluation covers the Rural Village Water Resources Management Project (RVWRMP), Phase III (2016-2022), which is supported by the Government of Nepal, the European Union and Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. It is located in Nepal’s remote western provinces and consists of components for water and sanitation (WASH), livelihoods, energy, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction, and governance. According to the evaluation, the project results so far include important outcomes for water and sanitation and nutrition as well as modest ones for income, energy and governance.

The evaluation provides objective information to the MFA about the effectiveness and efficiency of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) support programme, the results in the water sector and the lessons learned from the MRC activities for the future participation of Finland in multilateral cooperation. The evaluation focused on the Finland-funded programmes: Information and Knowledge Management Programme (IKMP), Initiative for Sustainable Hydropower (ISH), Water Management Trust Fund (WMTF) and the Junior Riparian Professionals programme (JRP).

This strategic ‘Evaluation of Agriculture, Rural Development and Forest Sector Programmes in Africa’ supports the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland in identifying relevant and effective approaches and instruments to support implementation of current programmes and planning of future cooperation in these sectors.

An external evaluation of the project was conducted in April - May 2019. It looked into the strategy, performance and attainment of the general development goals. The results of the evaluation will be taken into account in the planning of a possible second phase of the project. According to the evaluation, the project is highly relevant both for the strategic partnership between Finland and Mozambique, as well as for the sustainability and inclusiveness of the economic growth arising from the extractive industries and the development of democratic governance.

The priority objectives of the final evaluation were to assess and analyse the impact of IPP II in the development of the start-up ecosystem and innovation policy in Vietnam and its value and merit in the perspective of the key stakeholders, as well as the role of IPP in supporting the transition from aid to trade between Finland and Vietnam.

Evaluation report presents the results of a final joint evaluation of two forestry projects in Vietnam that have been supported by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland: “Development of Management Information System for the Forestry Sector (FORMIS – Phase II)” and “People Participation in Improvement of Forest Governance and Poverty Alleviation in Vietnam (PFG)”. The evaluation was conducted from October 2018 through December 2018. Evaluation reports are available both in English and in Vietnamese.

Finland, Norway and Denmark are supporting the Inclusive Growth in Mozambique – Scaling-up Research and Capacity programme, which aims to strengthen Mozambican institutions’ capacity to produce high-quality development economics research and to support the use of research in decision-making and public discussion. According to the review, the programme has produced good results; it has led to high-quality and relevant research, developed Mozambican institutions, and trained young researchers.

The expected outcome of Agro-Business Induced Growth in the Amhara National regional State, Phase II (AgroBig II) is that value is added at various levels of selected agricultural value chains to increase incomes and create jobs for farming households and other value chain actors, with a particular emphasis on women and youth. Agriculture employs still around 80 % of work force and is thus highly important for food security as well as for borrowing and investments. The AgroBig II is implemented in eight woredas (i.e. districts) in Amhara region. The purpose of the mid-term review of AgroBig II was to provide an independent view of the implementation of AgroBig II and to analyse needs for revision. In addition, the MTR was expected to provide recommendations to improve the program implementation.

Ministry for Foreign Affairs commissioned an independent Final Evaluation on the achieved results of the Water and Sanitation Programme for Small Towns in Vietnam (WSPST I-III, 2004-2017), with a focus on the second and third phases, and the sustainability of the results. The evaluation was expected to provide lessons learned and best practices related to the planning and implementation of water sector programmes that might include similar construction intensive elements in other countries and/or the establishment of a similar funding mechanism.

The mid-term evaluation (MTE) of the first phase of Strengthening Health Security and Biosecurity in Tanzania was done in 2017.

Final evaluation of three regional forest projects in the Mekong area, the Andes and Central America was implemented in 2017. The projects covered were (1): The Integrated Environmental and Forest Management Co-operation Project in Central America, Finnfor-II (Central America, 2012–2016); (2) Livelihood Improvement through Generation and Ownership of Forest Information by Local People in Products and Services Markets, ForInfo (Mekong, 2011–2015); and (3) The Sustainable Forest Management Programme in the Andean region (MFS) (South America, 2011–2016). Finland’s development co-operation (grant aid) has been phased out in Latin America and significantly reduced in the Mekong area. The focus of the evaluation was on the experience that can be of use for similar forest sector co-operation in Myanmar, Africa or elsewhere, and for future planning of other regional programmes.

Development financier Finnfund has succeeded in investing more and more in the world’s poorest countries and most difficult sectors, while also maintaining its commercial viability. The most positive development impacts can be seen in the company’s investments in agriculture and forestry. This information comes from an independent assessment of the company’s activities.

Ghana is one of the most important maritime centers in West Africa, where improving maritime safety is important. Continuous monitoring of mobility and anchorage near the gas pipeline along the coast is also central. The project supported by Finland improved maritime vessel traffic management technology in Ghana. The project was completed in 2013. It was implemented with a concessional credit scheme of 17.7 million euros and Finnish technology was delivered to the project. The evaluation assessed the implementation, results and impacts of the project and paid particular attention to the sustainability of the project. In addition, the aim was to provide recommendations to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland on programming of the new investment support instrument “The Public Sector Investment Facility” (PIF) for developing countries.

Final evaluation of the Finnish-Pacific project: adapting to climate change in Oceania (Finpac)

KPMG evaluated the EUR 50 million Finnfund Special Risk Instrument (SRI) that was in use between years 2012 and 2015. The evaluation is a requirement for the possible renewal of the SRI. In the SRI the MFA takes part of Finnfund’s investment risk in projects that are risky but at the same time have good development and/or environmental impacts.

Mid-term evaluation of the project ‘Farmers’ Clubs for Wealth Creation among Smallholder Farmers in Mozambique’ in two provinces; Sofala and Zambézia in 2014-2018. The objective of the project is to contribute to reducing rural poverty by strengthening the farmers’ productivity and sustainable agricultural practices.

The WASH in Schools (WinS) Programme in Afganistan from 2012 aims to make visible the value and impact of school sanitation as perceived by the community and thereby raise the level of ownerships; promote the importance of WASH in schools at national, state and district levels as well as to improve hygiene practices among school children, their families and communities. UNICEF wished to conduct an evaluation of the WASH in Schools (WinS) programme, whose findings and recommendations are intended to (1) guide UNICEF, the GoA and other stakeholders to improve the WinS programme, and (2) contribute to evidence-based policy making in the field of WASH and maximize the impact of the programme.

The Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) is a multi-year program responding to the call made at Rio+20 to support countries in pursuing green economy policies. PAGE is a partnership between five UN agencies – the UN Environment (formally known as UNEP), the International Labor Organization (ILO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), and, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). The Mid-Term Evaluation assesses project performance to date (in terms of relevance, effectiveness and efficiency), and determines the likelihood of the project achieving its intended outcomes and impacts, including their sustainability. The evaluation has two primary purposes: (i) to provide evidence of results to meet accountability requirements, and (ii) to promote operational improvement, learning and knowledge sharing through results and lessons learned.

The Women’s Leadership and Political Participation (WLPP), Wanawake-Wanaweza project was a 2-year project (2014-2016) designed and led by UN Women to improve participation and representation of women, youth and Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) as leaders in the political process in Tanzania. The end of project evaluation consisted of 3 components: i. conducting a utilization and equity focused end-project evaluation answering the DAC components of Design, Relevance & Coherence, Efficiency, Effectiveness and Sustainability; ii. capturing best practices of the project as key learnings; and iii. incorporating the key learnings to develop a new project document.

The Partnership for Infrastructure Development Multi-Donor Trust Fund (PID MDTF) is an instrument to pool funds and harmonize interventions aligned with the priorities for infrastructure of the Palestinian Authority (PA). It was established by the World Bank, in partnership with the Government of Sweden in 2012. The primary objectives of the mid-term evaluation were to (i) assess the effectiveness of the PID MDTF 2012-2015 activities, using its various implementation instruments (recipient- and bank-executed grants), and (ii) provide recommendations for the achievement of the program’s objectives and vision, as well as strategic direction.

In 2016, more than 20 project evaluations on development cooperation were carried out in different departments of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. Evaluations were made on all continents. Below evaluations are listed by country, region or organization.

In 2015, more than 20 project evaluations were carried out in different departments of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland on development cooperation. Evaluations were made on all continents. Below evaluations are listed by country, region or organization.

Final Evaluation of STIFIMO -programme

The evaluation examines Finland's aid between 2010 and 2012 to Nicaraguan NGOs working on good governance and human rights issues. The evaluation focuses on institutional support for three good governance and human rights organizations, as well as on the Life in Democracy programme composed of multiple actors. The evaluation was conducted by Impact Consulting Oy Ltd (chosen through a competitive bidding process).