MEDIA DEVELOPMENT

Evaluation Report
Executive summary
Serbia/Western Balkans
Giving youngsters a voice: Innovative digital media
for young people in Serbia and the Western Balkans

dw-akademie.com

Background

Conclusions of the project evaluation

There are shortcomings with regard to freedom of expression andfreedom of the media in all the Western Balkan states. There is nomedia diversity and media ownership is concentrated in the hands ofa few. This concentration of power leads to strong political influenceon the state and private media. The numerous media outlets in Serbia and the Western Balkans are to a large extent small local online
channels. They often have no journalistic competence and offer little
journalistic quality.

Relevance: As the analysis of the framework conditions has shown,the project addresses a key developmental problem and a decisive
development bottleneck in Serbia/Western Balkans. Media freedom
is one of the negotiation chapters in the EU accession process andas such currently relevant for Serbia, Montenegro and Northern
Macedonia, but potentially also for other countries of the WesternBalkans. Thus, the development policy objective of the project is inline with the goals and guidelines of the BMZ, as the German government constructively supports the EU accession process. Moreover,the promotion of freedom of expression and media development
is an essential aspect of German development policy. The projectis part of DW Akademie’s “Social Participation” strategy field, as it
aims to strengthen the participation of children and young people
in particular.

The region’s young people have neither interest nor trust in the classical media. These, in turn, ignore young people as a target group,and neglect to offer content either for or by young people. The majority of young people see no prospects at home and dream of studying or even emigrating abroad. Many have already left their homeland: Serbia is world leader in the brain drain states.
The project is aimed at strengthening the media so that they canoffer relevant information and participation opportunities in attractive and innovative digital formats for young target groups. The
project objective is: “Media in Serbia and the Western Balkans offer
relevant information and participation opportunities with digitalcomponents to target groups under 30 years of age.” The project addresses progressive media that already offer information for young
target audiences. These are sustainably strengthened with the helpof consulting activities and the development of target group-oriented offers. Pilot projects show how more participation can be madepossible for children and young people. In order to ensure sustainability, advisory and training capacities are built up in collaboration
with the project partners. They can then assume a multiplier function
and support other interested media in introducing offers for young
target groups. The project is to run for three years (2017–2019). The
project implementation organizations are Asocijacija medija, LokalPres and Krovna organizacija mladih Srbije (KOMS), the Serbian umbrella body of youth organizations.
The evaluation was carried out between November 2018 and the endof April 2019. The focus was on the evaluation of project work on
the basis of the OECD/DAC criteria. They serve to assess the successof a project in terms of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impactand sustainability. When selecting the methods, it was taken into account that the evaluation should primarily meet the methodologicaland technical requirements of a review, but should also provide recommendations for the effective further development of the project,which will be discussed with the project team at a change workshop.
The core of the evaluation were the project visits and interviews in
Serbia and Montenegro with individuals and groups. When selecting
the interview partners, care was taken to ensure that the statements
in connection with the information from the file and document
search permit triangulation. The interview partners took the opportunity to present their specific perspectives on the cooperation or
the project and its environment in the open discussions. Thus, various aspects were included in the discussions which were not listed inthis form in the evaluation matrix.

In addition, the project is in line with the objectives of the local
project implementation agencies. Concentration on young people
is necessary and is not served in this form by any other actor. It isimportant to cooperate with the Press Council, which is currently
in the process of establishing itself as a recognized self-regulating
body. The differentiation of the target group with regard to disadvantaged young people is not necessarily regarded as effective. The
project has captured and taken into account the digital challengesof the target groups. Therefore the criterion Relevance was rated as“comprehensively fulfilled”.
Effectiveness: The impact logic of the project is conclusive. The indicators at the outcome level are appropriately formulated: 1.1 - The
number of children and adolescents who have helped to design improved or new information offerings in the media rises from 0 to 80,
including 30 girls; 1.2 - The number of media organizations who havedesigned their information offerings for target groups under 30
years of age to be more participative, user-oriented and youth-oriented rises from 0 to 20, of which 7 are aimed at disadvantaged
children and adolescents. Indicator 1.1 is regarded as completely fulfilled, indicator 1.2 will probably be fulfilled, but no documentationis yet available (although this must be provided within the remaining
project period).
Most of the output indicators have already been reached or it is foreseeable that they will be reached by the end of the project period.
It is also important here to ensure that the documentation listed assources of verifiability is prepared and evaluated in good time.
From the evaluator’s point of view, the factors that had the strongest
influence on the achievement of the objectives should be mentioned:
The multiplier program and the train-the-trainer activities; the quality of the project team, including the local staff; the Brave New Media Forum as a beacon project with high visibility, broad impact andreach, with its function for regional networks and as a learning andexchange format; and the pilot projects developed and designed byyoung people because of their exemplary function and energy. The
criterion Effectivity was therefore rated as “overall fulfilled”.

Efficiency: The project activities are proportionate and cost-efficient. The project is implemented with a very small infrastructure
and a lean personnel concept. Wherever
possible, local experts are deployed. The
project partners are actively involved in theachievement of the objectives within theframework of project implementation.
From an efficiency point of view, it shouldbe emphasized that the project also initiates and promotes cooperation betweenthe project partners. Contributions from theproject implementation agencies and otherproject partners include working hours, useof premises and equipment, access to thework of colleagues, etc. Efficiency in project implementation also results from theuse of synergies through cooperation withother key players in the relevant sector. Cooperation with the GIZ took place within theframework of a project for the promotion ofdual training. The criterion Efficiency wasrated as “comprehensively fulfilled”.
Impact: In accordance with the target formulation, the measure strengthened therights of the target group young people in
the Western Balkans to freedom of expression and information. The project can beregarded as exemplary, structure-building
and broadly effective. There are no otherinternational organizations in the region
that work in the “Young Media” priority area.
Innovative lighthouse projects are used togreat effect in terms of visibility, broad impact and reach. The aim is not to train journalists, but to develop media competence,a “change of minds”. According to many in-terviewees, this desired and also achieved
awareness-raising among young people
and media professionals can bring aboutchange. The evaluation did not identify any
unintended negative effects. An importantdevelopmental impact results from the underlying approach of regional cooperation
as a contribution to conflict prevention in arather fragile region. Therefore the criterion
Impact was rated as “comprehensively fulfilled”.
Sustainability: In general, the evaluation
found that both the project implementation agencies and the cooperation partners
had anchored the objectives of the projectin their own long-term strategies. The highfluctuation in the personnel structures ofthe project partners is regarded as a significant risk for sustainability. Innovative
approaches and innovation processes that
achieve sustainable effects have been initiated. The methodology for the media analyses by focus groups was developed by
the project, and various assignments areplanned for the coming years. The learning
experiences in the project will be preparedand documented. It is difficult to assess theextent to which the target group(s) will beable and willing in the long term to maintainthe positive effects of the development measure without support; it is too optimistic toassume that sustainable structural improvements have already taken place. As a resultof that the criterion Sustainability was rated
as “partially fulfilled”.

DW Akademie

is Deutsche Welle’s center forinternational media development.
As a strategic partner of the Federal
Ministry for Economic Cooperationand Development (BMZ), DW Akademie
carries out media development projects that strengthen the human rightto freedom of opinion and promote
free access to information.
DW Akademie also works on projects
funded by the German Foreign Officeand the European Union — in approximately 50 developing and emerging
countries.

Contact

Dr. Jan Lublinski
Head Research and Evaluation
jan.lublinski@dw.com
53113 BonnGermany
DWAkademie@dw_akademie
youtube.com/DWAkademie
dw-akademie.com

The objective of the external evaluation is to provide a constructive assessment of the project results. It does not necessarily align with theperspective and planning of DW Akademie. Nevertheless, all ﬁndings were discussed in order to allow lessons learned to be incorporated into thedevelopment of future strategies.