REGIONAL EVALUATIONSTRATEGY
2018–2021

West & Central African Region

TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Background and justification.................................................................... 3
II. The global evaluation strategic plan (2018-2021)............................... 4
III. The regional evaluation strategy (2018-2021)...................................... 4
IV. Purpose of the regional evaluation strategy......................................... 5
RESULT AREA 1: REGIONAL EVALUATION SYSTEM STRENGTHENED........................... 6

a. Management attention to evaluation function is heightened.................. 6
b. Coverage of evaluations improved and maintained........................................ 7

c. Implementation of evaluations......................................................................................... 7
d. Quality and credibility of evaluations improved................................................. 7
RESULT AREA 2: UN COORDINATION ON GENDER RESPONSIVE EVALUATION......... 9
RESULT AREA 3: NATIONAL CAPACITIES STRENGTHENED FOR GENDER RESPONSIVE
M&E SYSTEM............................................................................................................................... 9
RESULT

AREA

4:KNOWLEDGEMANAGEMENTSTRENGTHENEDTHROUGHEVALUATION USE.................................................................................................................... 10

V. Responsibilities of the evaluation function...........................................11
VI. Mechanism for monitoring evaluation strategy implementation 13
Annex I: Theory of change............................................................................15
Annex II: Quality assurance checklist......................................................16

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 2

Photo; UNW colleague, Mary, explainschange theory for Peace, Security & Humanitarian Result Area

I. BACKGROUND & JUSTIFICATION
Within the framework of the Evaluation Policy,
evaluation in UN Women is a comprehensivefunction that contributes to learning andaccountability for informed oversight anddecision making and ultimately, more relevant
and effective programming towards genderequality and women’s empowerment.
The work of UN Women is largely anchored in
its Strategic Plan which is the centerpiece forthe organizational programming, management and accountability. The UN Women
Regional Office for West and Central Africa(WCARO) has developed its Strategic Note (SN)as an operationalization plan of the All Africa
Strategy for 2018-2021. The Strategic Note sets
out the strategic direction and priorities of
the region in areas of increased women leadership and participation; enhancing women’s
economic empowerment; ending violenceagainst women; engaging women in all
aspects of peace and security processes; andmaking gender equality central to national
development planning and budgeting.
In its Regional Strategic Plan (2018-2021),
WCARO intends to minimise instances of
direct programme implementation and act asa policy advice and support provider, as well as

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 3

a knowledge hub, facilitating Country offices
effective implementation of the Africa Strategy
through selected flagship programmes (FPI).
WCARO’s strategy emphasizes its regional roleas the interface between the headquarters(HQ) and the country offices in terms of oversight, advisory, technical support, and capacity
development.
The Regional Evaluation Strategy aims toprovide evaluative evidence required for WCARO
to fully play its oversight role. The evaluation
strategy will help sustain the gains achievedin improving the evaluation function in theregion so far, and to address remaining gaps
in key evaluation performance areas throughproviding a clear framework for the realizationof all aspects of the Evaluation Policy pertaining
to the regional, country offices of WCA Region.
Furthermore, it supports the UN system wide
processes and programme within the context
of UNDAF, UN reforms (DaO M&E), and Joint
programming in the region.
The Regional Evaluation Strategy outlines
the rationale, purpose, strategic results,
quality assurance in evaluation processes,
responsibilities, mechanisms for monitoring
implementation and a results framework.

Photo; UN Women evaluation team photo

II. THE GLOBAL EVALUATION STRATEGIC PLAN (2018-2021)

A Global Evaluation Strategic Plan was developed by UN Women’s Independent Evaluation
Service. The Global Evaluation Strategic Plan
is a comprehensive framework that guides
the entire organization at global, regional andcountry level to strengthen the evaluation function. It is guided by a Theory of Change (ToC)
based on a system-approach to strengthen
the institutional capability to better performand deliver expected results in line with the

Evaluation Policy. The ToC aims to strengthen
the capability to demand and use evaluation
by senior managers, as well as the capability todeliver high-quality evaluations by UN Women
staff and M&E officers/focal points at theregional, country office levels.
Based on the Evaluation Policy, the evaluation function at UN Women focuses on thefollowing major key results areas:

AREA 1

AREA 2

AREA 3

AREA 4

AREA 5

Effective
corporateevaluation system
implemented

Effective CO andRO evaluation
systemimplemented

UN coordination ongender responsive
evaluation
promotedNational evaluation
capacities for genderresponsive M&E
systems strengthened

Knowledge
management
strengthened throughevaluation use

III.

THE REGIONAL EVALUATION STRATEGY (2018-2021)

The Regional Evaluation Strategy is aligned with
the Evaluation Policy and the Global Evaluation
Strategic Plan (2018-2021). It aims to achieve
an effective evaluation function that provides
timely and credible evaluative evidence toinform and influence decision making at theregional, country levels, and ultimately make

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 4

UN Women a more effective and efficient organization in the region.
It is also aimed at supporting learning needs
for the ongoing All Africa Strategy and flagshipprograms implemented in the region.

IV.

PURPOSE OF THE REGIONAL EVALUATION STRATEGY

The main purpose of the Regional Evaluation Strategy is to provide a results-based
framework to strengthen the evaluation function in the region in the context of the
Evaluation Policy and UN-Women 2018-2021 Strategic Plan. The ultimate goal is to support
UN-Women’s mission and help the organization better serve gender equality and women
empowerment in the region. The Regional Evaluation Strategy is framed around four strategic result areas:
AREA 1

AREA 2

AREA 3

Effective CO andRO evaluation
systemimplemented

UN coordination ongender responsive
evaluation
promotedNational evaluation
capacities for genderresponsive M&E
systems strengthened

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 5

AREA 4
Knowledge
management
strengthened throughevaluation use

Result Area 1: Regional evaluation system strengthened
A. Management attention to evaluation function is heightened
In accordance with the Evaluation Policy, theRegional Office Director and Country Office
Representatives champion the use of all evaluations in WCA region and ensure that adequate
financial and human capacity is made available
for evaluation to ensure a fully effective evaluation function. They also assume responsibility
for creating an enabling environment forstrengthened evaluation culture.
Capacity to carry out evaluation functionmeans nothing if evaluation plans are under-resourced, evaluation results are not properly
used, and the required skills and expertise are
not made available. The Strategy provides forreinforced efforts to secure resources necessary to perform the evaluation function at theregional and country office levels.
A retrospective look at the investment on evaluation in the region reveals that it is below
the minimum level of investment (3%) set out
in the Evaluation Policy. As appropriate budget
allocation is central to ensuring the quality
credibility for increased utility of evaluation,
all Offices in the region will be encouraged to
set aside a reasonable amount of their total
budget for evaluation related activities. As partof AWP budgeting, each office should prepare acosted evaluation plan.
Adequate and skilled human resources for
Monitoring and Evaluation
Efforts have been made to increase capacity
for monitoring and evaluation at the field level.
There are diverse institutional arrangements
for staffing at the field level. The majority of UN
Women offices in WCAR only have focal points
for monitoring and evaluation, only a few

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 6

offices have specialized/dedicated monitoringand evaluation staff.
While such an arrangement is understandable
given the operational span and resource base of
the Entity, the continued absence of such dedicated expertise will have a significant bearing
on the overall evaluative work of UN Womenand its capacity to promote gender-responsive evaluation in joint and/or system-wide
evaluation at the country-level, including inevaluations of the United Nations Development
Assistance Frameworks (UNDAFs).
The Regional Office will work with all Offices in
the region to ensure appointment of dedicated
M&E Officers or M&E focal points and build
the capacity of field office staff on the conduct,
management and use of gender responsive
evaluations.
Reinforcing accountabilities for evaluation
In accordance with the Evaluation Policy, theevaluation strategy aims to further mainstream the demand for evaluation at regionaland country office levels. Main evaluation findings and recommendations will be discussed
and regularly monitored during country officeor regional office meetings, including annual
retreats.
Quality, credibility and use of evaluation ismainly promoted through a system of organizational incentives, inclusion in the performanceappraisal system and investment in evaluation
capacity development.

B.

Coverage of evaluations improved and maintained

Coverage of evaluation in the WCA Region(2014-2017) is reasonably good. However, asignificant number of evaluations were delayed,
postponed or cancelled. In addition, one
country office has not conducted any project,programme or strategic note evaluation since2011. The strategy will reinforce the existing
systems to ensure that evaluation plans are
strategically designed, properly implemented
and regularly reviewed. The strategy will give
particularly focus to those offices with limited
experience in conducing project/programme
or country programme evaluations.

C.

D.

Systematic support to regional, country
offices to ensure evaluations are strategically planned, and carried out according to
the evaluation plans, and are of high quality
and can be used to improving learning,accountability and programming.

•

Ensure timely review of the evaluationplans in line with the AWP planning andmake adjustment to the needs and priorities of the respective countries/offices.

The Strategy will reinforce the mechanism
for implementing evaluation plans throughconsistent follow up by Regional Evaluation
Specialists, quarterly tracking in the GATE
system as well as through the Global Evaluation
Oversight System 1 .

Quality and credibility of evaluations improved

The 2017 GERAAS assessment shows thequality of evaluations in the region is reasonably positive. Out of the WCA evaluation reports
assessed, none was rated as ‘Unsatisfactory’.
However, as more and more evaluations areplanned to be undertaken in the span of the
SN cycle with a wider scope and coverage
including country-level, joint and UNDAF
evaluations, consistent follow up and support
is required to country offices to conduct highquality and credible evaluations. While manyfactors, including limited financial and humancapacity at field level account for the poor
quality of evaluations, the 2017 meta-analysis

2•

Implementation of Evaluations

All Offices in the region are expected to identify
their planned evaluations by analyzing theirrespective
regional/multi-country/country
Strategic Notes and identifying potential
needs and commitments. Knowing in advance
what evaluations will be conducted in a given
period allows more time to identify and recruit
evaluation teams with the right expertise to
maximize the potential for evaluations.

1

In this regard, the strategy will pursue thefollowing to improve coverage of evaluations in
WCA region:

revealed that a majority of programmes lack
explicit theories of change, measurable results
frameworks, or adequate monitoring. Most of
the evaluation reports also cite the lack of data
as a major constraint to evaluation. All thesehave a significant bearing on the quality andcredibility of evaluations undertaken in theregion.
The Regional Office together with the
Independent Evaluation Office will reinforce
the quality assurance mechanism in all evaluation processes at regional, country level.
These mechanisms include reviewing of

The Global Evaluation Oversight System has been established to ensure a transparent and sound system to monitor the performance of the evaluation function in UN-Women.
The system includes a dashboard that presents key performance indicators for the evaluation function in a user-friendly manner.
The Global Evaluation Reports Assessment and Analysis System (GERAAS) was established by the IES with the aim of improving the quality and use of evaluations. The GERASS
uses UNEG evaluation report standards as a basis for review and assessment, while ensuring specific standards relevant to UN-Women. The system provides an independent
assessment of the quality and usefulness of evaluation reports. In addition, it serves knowledge management objectives by synthesizing evaluation findings, good practices
and lessons learned, and capacity development objectives by sending individual practical feedback to commissioning offices on how to improve the quality and usefulnessof future evaluations.

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 7

terms of reference, inception and final reports,
assessment using the GERAAS methodology,
as well as oversight, quality assurance andtechnical support by the Regional Evaluation
Specialist based in the Regional Office. As partof the meta-evaluation, executive feedback
and review results of the individual evaluation
reports will be provided to the Country Offices
citing areas for improvement and learning.
Quality assurance
processes

systeminevaluation

As outlined in the evaluation chapter of theProgramme and Operations Manual (POM),
the evaluation function is managed througha shared responsibility involving the country
offices, regional offices, and the Independent
Evaluation Service (IES). Each office assumes

a distinct role and responsibility. Working
together, they contribute to a coherent andeffective evaluation function in UN Women.
The Strategy among others will enforce andstrengthen the mechanism for quality assurance at different stages of the evaluation
process as outlined in the table below. All
Offices are required to ensure 100% compliancewith the quality assurance process for all evaluations managed by their respective offices.
This indicator will be reported by respective
offices and monitored by the Regional Office
on a biannual basis. Use Annex II to report on
the status of compliance against set of quality
assurance processes.

Table 1: Quality Assurance Process
MONITORING, EVALUATION AND RESEARCH PLANS (MERP)The M&E officer/focal point develops the MER plan in consultation with concerned programme officers and senior managers
The draft plan is sent to the Regional Evaluation Specialist (RES) for review
The (M)CO Representative/Regional Director submits the MER plan together with the SN/AWP for PRG’s review and approval
The M&E officer/focal point uploads the evaluation section of the MER plan to GATE within one month of approval

TERMS OF REFERENCE (TOR)The M&E officer/focal point provides assistance in the development of the evaluation’s terms of reference. In the absence ofan M&E Officer, the evaluation task manager takes the lead in developing the ToR.
The draft ToR is sent to the RES for quality review
Final ToR is approved by the country representative/deputy representative

SELECTION OF CONSULTANTS
The M&E officer/focal point provides assistance in the selection of the consultant used for the evaluation in consultation with
RES. For countries with no M&E officer, the evaluation task manager plays a key role in the selection of consultant/s.

The final selection of the consultant is approved by the country representative/deputy representative

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 8

Table 1 (contd): Quality Assurance Process
INCEPTION REPORTThe M&E Officer/focal point or the evaluation task manager takes the primarily responsibility for quality assuring andapproving the inception report.
The draft and final inception report is sent to the RES for quality review

DRAFT AND FINAL EVALUATION REPORTS
The M&E officer provides assistance in ensuring the quality of the draft evaluation report. In cases where no M&E
officer is appointed, the evaluation task manager should play the role of assuring the quality of the draft and final
evaluation report.
The draft evaluation report is sent to the RES for quality review
The final report is approved by the country representative/deputy representative
The M&E officer/M&E focal point uploads the final evaluation report within six weeks of finalization to the GATEMANAGEMENT RESPONSE
The country representative/deputy representative leads the development of the management response and ensures timely
implementation of key actions
The M&E officer/focal point uploads the management response in the GATE system within six weeks of finalization
The country representative approves the MER plan, final evaluation report and management response in the GATE system
The country representative or deputy should ensure timely implementation of the key actions

Result Area 2: UN coordination on gender responsive evaluation
Within the context of the UN Reform, we
will work within the broad R-UNDG PSG-QSA
mechanism to support gender responsive
evaluations & integrating GEHR in UNDAF andjoint evaluations. The previous exercise has
shown the limits of creating a separate regional
M&E inter-agency group as several agencies

dedicate little human resources for evaluation
at regional and country office levels.
This approach will help reflect gender equality
and human rights in all UN programming inthe spirit of the No One Left Behind Agenda.

Result Area 3: National Capacities strengthened for GenderResponsive M&E system
National evaluation capacity development
is particularly relevant in the era of SDGs tofurther promote and support accountability
for gender equality at the national level. UN
Women Regional Office will encourage M&E
staff to take every opportunity to establish
links with national evaluation networks for

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 9

each evaluation conducted by various country
offices. National GRE capacity development will
be further enhanced by supporting regional
evaluation networks such as APNODE (African
Parliamentarians’ Network for Development
Evaluation).

Result Area 4: Knowledge management strengthened
through evaluation use
Enhanced capacities on evaluation will ultimately lead to generating credible evidence
and accelerating progress on gender equality
and women empowerment in the region.
Evaluation capacity development will consist
in a deliberate process to acquire, enhance,and sustain over time the abilities to manage,
conduct and use gender responsive evaluations. Different modalities of enhancing
Gender Responsive Evaluation capacities will
be used to build staff capacity on evaluation:
face-to-face internal and external trainings,
online platforms and other learning events,
online trainings, communities of practiceStronger capacities in evaluation should alsotranslate into more useful evaluations. This willreinforce the Knowledge Management agenda
which was identified as a major priority area for
WCA’s Regional Strategy. The regional emphasis
on Knowledge Management is an excellent
opportunity for evaluation use. Evaluative
evidence will support programming throughuser-friendly communications and dissemination tools. Evaluation reports will undergo
additional refinements for increased use by UN
Women staff and stakeholders. Closer collaboration with Policy and Communication units
is expected to translate in more user-friendly
evaluation products for increased learning anddiscussions.
A key success factor is the extent to which
recommendations are implemented and used
to contribute to organizational accountability,
informed decision making, and learning. The
dialogue elicited by dissemination processes

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 10

and products will help obtain commitment
through management responses, as the main
institutional instrument for officially taking into
consideration evaluation recommendations.
Tracking Management Response
Implementation
Development of management responseto evaluations and implementation of key
actions is reasonably positive in the region.
Management responses are prepared foreach evaluation, including joint evaluations inwhich UN-Women participated. In line with
the Evaluation Policy, the Head of Office is
responsible for finalization, implementationand monitoring of the management response.
The strategy targets increased compliance withthe development, implementation and monitoring of management responses through theuse of the GATE system. The GATE provides
a platform to store all evaluations including
management responses in a transparent
manner and ensures a follow-up mechanism torecommendations through a tracking systemof actions. For evaluations conducted in a given
period, it is possible to count the number of
the key actions completed, of the remaining
actions still under implementation and thoseactions that are not yet initiated. This parameter together with other key performanceindicators will be monitored by the regional
evaluation specialist to ensure that key actions
are timely implemented.

Photo: UNW Standing for Girls & Women Rights

V. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE EVALUATION FUNCTION
The Regional Office plays an oversight role withrespect to adherence to key corporate requirements in the region. The Evaluation Chapterof the POM clearly spells out the user andapproval rights of the GATE system. GATE focal
points will be appointed by all Offices in theregion. The Regional Evaluation Strategy willfurther reinforce systems for accountability
particularly by senior managers and those with
programmatic, monitoring and evaluation
functions.

Table 2: Roles and responsibilities of the evaluation function in UN Women at country and regional office levels•

Assume overall accountability for evaluation function at country level•

Institute measures to ensure that evaluations are strategically selected based on a set ofcriteria charted out in the Evaluation Policy

•

•
•
•

COUNTRYREPRESENTATIVES/
DIRECTORS

•

•
•
•
•

Appoint M&E officer and/or M&E focal point

Ensure the timely development and implementation of Monitoring, Evaluation, andResearch plans (MERP)
Ensure appropriate allocation of the country office budget to evaluation

Ensure that strategic notes, new programmes and initiatives are designed in a way that
permits evaluation at a later stage (founded on clear results statements and SMART
indicators, theory of change, baseline and target information, etc.)
Institute appropriate management arrangements described below to ensure
independence and quality of evaluations according to the United Nations Evaluation
Group (UNEG) norms and standards as provided in the UN-Women Global Evaluation
Reports Assessment and Analysis System (GERAAS)
Approve evaluation plans, evaluation reports and management response in the GATE
systemEnsure that evaluation findings are considered to improve programming, learning anddecision making
Ensure that management response to recommendations are prepared, and thatappropriate management action is taken

Ensure that all programme staff have a foundational knowledge of evaluation principles
and types and ensure that new appointments to monitoring and evaluation posts are
made against the UNEG evaluation competencies

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 11

Table 2 contd.: Roles and responsibilities of the evaluation function in UN Women at country and regional office levels•

Advise on evaluability by preparing the programme for future evaluations•

Assume responsibilities as focal point for the GATE system:•••

MONITORING AND
EVALUATION (M&E)
OFFICERS/FOCAL POINTS

•
•
•
•

•
•

support the monitoring of action plans of management responses to evaluations,
including providing quarterly updates on status of implementation in the GATE system
Support the office in accurately tracking evaluation allocations and expenditures

Support Senior Managers in developing management responses to all evaluations andfollow up timely approval by head of the respective office
Individual capacity permitting, act as Evaluation Task Manager

Support the organization of Corporate Evaluation data collection, including organizing
case study missions, identify documents and stakeholders to be consulted, designinterview schedules, organize feedback on the draft case study and management
response to the final case study, and provide logistical support as required
Take part in system-wide UN coherence including representing UN Women in interagency platforms on M&E at the country level

Support efforts to enhance UN Women internal M&E capacity and national capacity on
M&E with a focus on gender responsive evaluation
Assume overall accountability for evaluation function in the region•

Ensure appropriate allocation of resources for evaluation (3% of the total budget in theregion)••••Ensure country offices’ compliance with evaluation-related accountability

Support and guide regional, country offices capacity in evaluation

Approve MERP, ToR, evaluation reports, and management responses for the Regional Office
Ensure that evaluation findings are fully considered, that management response torecommendation are prepared, and that appropriate management action is taken
Promote organizational learning through application of evaluation findings andrecommendations in the region programming•

Conduct and/or manage strategic regional and country-level evaluations•

Lead development of regional evaluation strategies and ensure their implementation•••

COUNTRYREPRESENTATIVES/
DIRECTORS

upload, update and report on status of evaluation plans (i.e. evaluation section of theMER), completed evaluation reports and ToRs••

REGIONAL DIRECTORS

Provide technical advice in the planning, management, dissemination and response toevaluations

•
•
•
•
•

Support implementation of evaluation policies and strategies
Advise regional, country directors on evaluation issues

Provide technical support and oversight on the development of MCO/CO’s MER plans,review of ToR, inception report, and draft and final evaluation reports

Provide direct technical support and advice for evaluations including UNDAF and otherjoint evaluation processes from a gender equality and human rights perspective

Support evaluation capacity development through trainings and exchange of experiences
and continuous learning on M&E
Provide technical assistance in the use of GATE, and track management response toevaluations conducted by the ROs, MCOs and COs
Represent UN Women in regional inter-agency M&E platforms

Support regional and national voluntary evaluation networks and associations andnational evaluation capacity development from a gender equality and human rights
perspective

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 12

Photo;: Campaigning against FGM in Kone

VI. MECHANISM FOR MONITORING THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE EVALUATION STRATEGY
Monitoring the implementation of the Evaluation Strategy is an integral part of the Strategy.
The Strategy identifies the key results areas, indicators with baselines and targets for eachstrategic focus area to strengthen evaluation function in the region over the next four years(2018-2021). It also lays out the overall accountability/responsibility for implementation of
the identified actions, the key milestones and the timelines for delivering them. Moreover,progress on the key performance indicators of the evaluation function is reported through the
Global Evaluation Oversight System Dashboard to the senior managers of the organization
on a quarterly basis. Periodic review is done by the regional office to take stock of the performance and make adjustments on the progress.

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 13

VII. RESULTS FRAMEWORKRESULTS

INDICATORSFREQUENCY

SOURCEBASELINE

TARGET% of evaluation expenditure from the total expenditure in theregionAnnual

ATLAS

0.9%

1.5%

% of Offices that have appointed M&E focal points or M&E
Officers

Quarterly

RES

70%

80%

B. Coverage of evaluations improved and maintained

Number of Offices with at least 1 eval conducted

AnnualRES

7

8

C Implementation of evaluations

Number of evaluations completed

Quarterly

RES

60%

90%

D. Quality and credibility of evaluation improved%% of evaluations with GERAAS rate: “Good’

Annual

IES

80%

90%

% of evaluations that have developed and uploaded management response in the GATE

Annual

GATE

80%

90%

% implementation of management response key actions

Annual

GATE

60%

70%

Semi-Annual

IES

80%

100%

Annual

RES

20%

30%

AnnualRES

1

2

AnnualGATE

0

2Result Area 1: Effective CO and RO Evaluation System strengthened and implemented

A Management attention to evaluation function isheightened

E Evaluative evidence generated is used and supports
results and evidence based programming
F Internal evaluation capacity enhanced to manage anduse evaluations% of M&E specialists/focal points trained in gender responsive
evaluation

Result Area 2: UN coordination on gender responsive evaluation promoted
G. Gender equality integrated in UNDAF and joint
evaluations% of offices that participated in UNDAF and Joint evaluations

Results Area 3: National Evaluation Capacities for gender responsive M&E system strengthened
H. Evaluation events & trainings conducted

Number of evaluation events & trainings conducted

Results Area 3: National Evaluation Capacities for gender responsive M&E system strengthened
User friendly products delivered

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 14

Number of evaluation reports that were graphically designed

THEORY OF CHANGE TO STRENGTHEN UN WOMEN EVALUATION FUNCTION

LONG -TERM
OUTCOMESIMPACT : More relevant, effective and efficient UN Women with greater impact on the lives of the women and girls it serves

Improved use of gender-responsive evaluation by UN Women and its partners for learning, strategic decision-making, policy & programme development
Timely and relevant evaluative evidence on UN Women’s contribution todevelopment and organizational effectiveness and efficiency results

CONTEXT

Increased demand and conduct of GRE to support accountability for
GE commitments in SDGs amd beyond

INTERMEDIATEOUTCOMESSTRATEGIC
FOCUS

CORPORATEDECENTRALIZEDStrengthened UN system-wide
environment & capacity for GRE

Programming and management decisions in UN Women are informed byevaluative evidence

NATIONAL EVALCAPACITYUN
COORDINATION

USEStrengthened national context& capacity to conduct GRE for
meeting GE commitments & SDGs

ASSUMPTIONS

Planet50/50

SDGs

Evaluation use facilitated through effective evaluation communication,advocacy and knowledge management

OUTPUTS

QCPR
Coverage, timelines and quality of evaluations maintained and improved
Evaluation oversight and quality assurance systems stregthened to support UN Womenaccountability and learning
Innovative methodologies enhance for high quality and credible evaluations
Internal capacities strengthened to manage and use gender-responsive evaluations

KNOWLEDGE HUB

Greater integration of GRE perspective
in UNEG policies & practiceGreater integration of GRE perspective innational M&E systems, policies & practiceStrengthened accountability for
GRE in the UN (UN SWAP)

Increased awareness and support ofnational decision-makers for GRE

UN interagency capacity on
GRE supported

Technical assistance provided at regionaland national level on conduct of GRE

INNOVATIONd r i v e r so f

c h a n g e

PARTNERSHIPS/NETWORKS

UN reform

ANNEX II: Quality Assurance Checklist
Name of Office:Region:Title of the Evaluation:
Name of M&E Officer/focal point (if different from theEval. Task Manager):

Name of Evaluation Task Manager:
Year
Stage of the Evaluation
Planning Stage

Preparation Stage

Quality assurance process to be complied
Monitoring, Evaluation and Research Plans (MERP)The M&E officer/focal point develops the MER plan in consultation with concerned
programme officers and senior managers

Yes

No

The draft plan is sent to the Regional Evaluation Specialist (RES) for review

Yes

No

The (M)CO Representative/Regional Director submits the MER plan together with the
SN/AWP for PRG’s review and Approval

Yes

No

The M&E officer/focal point uploads the evaluation section of the MER plan to GATE
within one month of approval

Yes

No

Yes

No

The draft ToR is sent to the RES for quality review

Yes

No

Final ToR is approved by the country representative/deputy representative

Yes

No

Terms of Reference (ToR)The M&E officer provides assistance in the development of the evaluation’s terms ofreference. In the absence of an M&E Officer, the evaluation task manager takes thelead in developing the ToR.

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 16

Status of complianceagainst set of quality assurance processes

Remark (if any)Selection of consultants

Conduct Stage

The M&E officer provides assistance in the selection of the consultant used for theevaluation in consultation with RES. For countries with no M&E officer, the evaluation
task manager plays a key role in the selection of consultant/s.

Yes

No

The final selection of the consultant is approved by the country representative/deputy
representative

Yes

No

The M&E Officer or the evaluation task manager takes the primarily responsibility for
quality assuring and approving the inception report.

Yes

No

The draft and final inception report is sent to the RES for quality review

Yes

No

The M&E officer provides assistance in ensuring the quality of the draft evaluation report. In cases where no M&E officer is appointed, the evaluation task manager shouldplay the role of assuring the quality of the draft and final evaluation report

Yes

No

The draft evaluation report is sent to the RES for quality review
Yes 0

Yes

No

The final report is approved by the country representative/deputy representative

Yes

No

The M&E officer/M&E focal point uploads the final evaluation report within six weeks
of finalization to the GATE

Yes

No

The country representative/deputy representative leads the development of the management response and ensures timely implementation of key actions

Yes

No

The M&E officer/focal point uploads the management response in the GATE system
within six weeks of finalization

Yes

No

The country representative approves the MER plan, final evaluation report and management response in the GATE system

Yes

No

Inception Report

Draft and final evaluation reports

Use

WCA Regional Evaluation Strategy • p. 17

Management response

UN WOMEN IS THE UN ORGANIZATION
DEDICATED TO GENDER EQUALITY
AND THE EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN. A
GLOBAL CHAMPION FOR WOMEN AND
GIRLS, UN WOMEN WAS ESTABLISHEDTO ACCELERATE PROGRESS ON
MEETING THEIR NEEDS WORLDWIDE.
UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards
for achieving gender equality, and works with governments and civilsociety to design laws, policies, programmes and services needed
to implement these standards. It stands behind women’s equal
participation in all aspects of life, focusing on five priority areas:
increasing women’s leadership and participation; ending violenceagainst women; engaging women in all aspects of peace andsecurity processes; enhancing women’s economic empowerment;
and making gender equality central to national development
planning and budgeting. UN Women also coordinates and promotes
the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality.