The EvalColombo2018 conference represents the first major global event to be hosted by the Global Parliamentarian Forum on Evaluation. The conference brought together over 150 delegates from legislatures, governments and development agencies across the globe to discuss the role of evaluation and parliaments in the pursuit of Agenda 2030. The inauguration marks the official opening of the event and will set the stage for the important discussions to follow.
Session 1 – National Evaluation Policies and Systems for Good Governance and Accountability
The informed political observer might be forgiven for concluding that the promoting of policies founded on respect for an objective fact has given way in recent years to policies founded on rhetoric that appeals to emotion and personal belief. In a “post-truth” world, clouded by regular denunciations of “fake news”, we ask global evaluation experts to highlight what they see as the challenges and opportunities for using evaluation evidence to reinforce good governance and accountability.
Key Note Speakers
Hon. Kabir Hashim, Minister of Highways and Road Development, Sri Lanka and Chair – Global Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation
Ms. Caroline Heider, Director General and Senior Vice President, Evaluation, World Bank Group
Dr. Marvin Taylor-Dormond, Director General, Independent Evaluation Department, Asian Development Bank
Moderator
Dr. Dorothy Lucks, Co-chair, EVALSDGs
Session 2
Panel 1 – Evaluation and National Evaluation Policies for Evidence-Based Policy Making.
Using evidence from evaluations to support national policy decision making, has been promoted by international development institutions and welcomed favourably by governments around the world. But while the rationale for evidence use seems clear, the experience of implementing National Evaluation Policies (NEPs) has varied. What have been some of the experiences so far? How can we learn from the challenges encountered and what role can parliamentarians play to support NEPs that further Agenda 2030?
Panel chair:
Dr. Emmanuel Jimenez, Executive Director, 3ie
Panelists:
Dr. Ian Goldman, CLEAR AA Advisor: Evaluation and Evidence Systems, Former DPME, South Africa,
Mr. Ziad Moussa, Co-chair EvalPartners
Ms. Andrea Cook, Director Evaluation – World Food Programme
Panel 2 – What have we learnt from national evaluation systems and national evaluation capacity?
National evaluation capacity is the corner stone of a functioning National Evaluation System, but what exactly do we mean by evaluation capacity and what are some of the successful strategies for building it?
Panel chair:
Dr. Masahiro Igarashi, Director – Office of Evaluation, Food and Agriculture Organization
Panelists:
Mr. Gonzalo Hernandez Licona, Executive Secretary, Coneval, Mexico
Hon. Ananda Kumarasiri, Deputy Speaker of the Sri Lanka Parliament and Chair – Sri Lanka Parliamentarians Forum for Evaluation
Mr. Riccardo Polastro, Regional Advisor Evaluation UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office
Ms. Silvia Salinas Mulder, Coordinator, ReLAC
Panel 3 – Evaluation as a lever to increase the socio-economic impact and efficiency of public investments.
Public investment constitutes a significant portion of government spending that delivers important economic infrastructure and physical assets. Unlike other types of government spending, projects often span several years and involve technically complex assignments that are subject to political pressures and are prone to corruption. While parliamentarians play an important role in project appraisal and budget approval, the practice of evaluating public investment projects is often neglected in the budget cycle. In this session a group of technical experts and parliamentarians will explore the potential for parliaments to play a greater role in using evaluation of public investment to leverage socio-economic impact.
Panel chair:
Mr. Jim Brumby: Director – Governance Global Practice, World Bank Group
Panellists:
Hon. Harsha De Silva, State Minister of National Policies and Economic Affairs
Hon. Olfa Cherif, Member of Parliament, Tunisia
Ms. Olasumbo Ayinde-Yakub, EvaluationSpecialist, MinistryofBudgetandNationalPlanning, Nigeria
Dr. Lee Chong wook, Evaluation Specialist, South Korea
Session 3 – Experience sharing through a presentation of case studies.
The conference brings together high-level delegates from government, parliaments and international development agencies across the globe. During this working session, delegates had an opportunity to share their experiences in supporting and promoting National Evaluation Policies and the systems that accompany them. The objective is to identify sources of learning that can be shared across regions and strengthen the foundations of the global network of parliamentarians promoting evaluation.
Moderators:
Mr. Kassem El-Saddik, EVALSDGs Vice Chair
Ms. Dina Melhem, Regional Director- MENA and Asia, Westminster Foundation for Democracy
