IDEV 2019 Annual Report: From experience to knowledge and learning

For Independent Development Evaluation (IDEV), 2019 was a year of helping the African Development Bank Group and its Regional Member Countries (RMCs) to transform experience into knowledge and learning through independent evaluations. 

IDEV has supported both the Bank and its RMCs to achieve their development goals through the lens of the Bank’s High 5 priorities, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the African Union Agenda 2063. IDEV delivered 13 evaluation products, conducting and facilitating evaluations, knowledge sharing events, and capacity development activities in more than 26 countries in Africa.

IDEV’s evaluations informed high-level discussions and decisions, such as those on the Bank’s 7th General Capital Increase and the 15th replenishment of the African Development Fund. It also introduced new evaluation products in response to expressed knowledge needs of the Board of Directors and Bank Management. Independent evaluations this year contributed to the continuous improvement of the Bank’s systems, processes and mechanisms for delivering on its mandate.

IDEV’s work also contributed to the entire evaluation community by providing an opportunity to learn from experience and to plan and deliver development results to the highest possible standards. Promoting a culture of knowledge sharing and learning, strengthening the evaluation capacity of stakeholders, and developing strategic partnerships on the continent and beyond, continued to be priorities in 2019.

“Going forward, I believe it is essential to work with the Board and Bank Management to create a culture of results measurement that feeds back into decision-making and helps drive the Bank and the continent’s transformation. Helping the institution to learn from experience is the first step. In 2020, we look forward to helping it turn that knowledge into action,” Roland Michelitsch, the new Evaluator-General, said.