Strengthening Evidence Based Development (Five Years of Better Evaluation Practice at USAID 2011–2016)

Through research and analysis of evidence-based development strategies, this document synthesizes reflections from 5 years of evaluation practice at USAID. The USAID Evaluation Policy has served as a model for other agencies, and external organizations have credited USAID for having one of the most comprehensive policies on evaluation of any federal agency. USAID takes an ongoing learning approach to evaluation, and the Agency is continuing to improve evaluation quality and ensure that information from evaluation findings is used to inform decisions and improve programs. When work began to implement the Evaluation Policy, USAID identified several major challenges to overcome or mitigate.