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Celebrating excellence in evaluation
The UNDP Independent Evaluation Office is delighted to announce the winners of the Evaluation Excellence Awards, held for the fifth time ever on 9 April 2025.
The Outstanding Evaluation Award was given to three country offices:
- UNDP Morocco for Final Evaluation of Joint Programme ONDH 3
- UNDP Mongolia for Mid-Term Evaluation: Improving Adaptive Capacity and Risk Management of Rural Communities in Mongolia
- UNDP Montenegro for Terminal Evaluation: NAP - Enhancing Montenegro’s capacity to integrate climate change risks into planning
The Gender-Responsive Evaluation Award was given to two country offices:
- UNDP Costa Rica for Terminal Evaluation: Seventh Operational Phase of the GEF Small Grants Programme in Costa Rica
- UNDP Indonesia for Terminal Evaluation: Combating Illegal and Unsustainable Trade in Endangered Species in Indonesia
Evaluations are a vital component of programme and project management and decision-making in UNDP. They provide evidence of what works and what doesn’t, identify factors that help or hinder the achievement of objectives, and provide lessons to improve future programming.
This year, a Special Recognition was given to UNDP Country Offices under the Regional Bureau for Arab States for consistently high-quality evaluations between 2021 and 2024.
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Morocco
Final Evaluation of Joint Programme ONDH 3
"Evaluation rarely, if ever, has a place in the drama that surrounds policy implementation. This evaluation report works exceptionally well to have its message heard. It is a call for better evaluation practices such that the policy-shaping community—nationally, regionally and internationally—remains focused on developing better measures to monitor and measure human development." - The Awards Panel
"This evaluation report works exceptionally well to have its message heard."
The winning country office said: "The success of the public policies assessment program evaluation stemmed from its strong grounding in the program’s content and results. Led by ONDH with support from UNDP and UN partners (UNICEF, UNFPA, WHO, UNODC), the evaluation aligned with UNDP principles and engaged stakeholders throughout. It enhanced national capacity to assess public policies and demonstrated the power of collaboration. Trust from national partners was key—allowing recommendations to strengthen Morocco’s national statistical system and inform better policy design. This strategic partnership advanced Morocco’s vision for effective public policy and earned recognition for its contribution to national and global evaluation efforts."
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Mongolia
Mid-Term Evaluation: Improving Adaptive Capacity and Risk Management of Rural Communities in Mongolia
"This interim evaluation report makes a compelling case for what will be needed to chart the way forward with respect to promoting adaptive change and risk management in rural Mongolia. In pastoralist societies like in Mongolia, livestock is a key variable in understanding the complex relationships of human and natural systems. The evaluators ask for several actionable items, among which is the need for specific budgetary allocations to monitor the effectiveness of the activities vis-à-vis its impact on the well-being and livelihood of female herders. A gender sensitive analysis of vulnerability is a critical need of the hour; a step that the evaluators rightly observe would help the program more fully understand the dynamics of building and sustaining adaptive capacities in rural Mongolia." - The Awards Panel
"This interim evaluation report makes a compelling case for what will be needed to chart the way forward."Awards panel
ADAPT Project Team – July 2023
The winning country office said: "UNDP Mongolia is thrilled and deeply grateful to receive this recognition. It reflects the dedication of our team and partners, and the value we place on transparency, quality, and donor trust given today’s global context. The interim evaluation of the ADAPT project helped us identify key areas for improvement and provided actionable recommendations, many of which are now guiding the second phase of implementation and also applicable to other projects. Most importantly, the inclusive evaluation process deepened our stakeholder engagement. This recognition inspires us to keep learning, improving, and delivering meaningful, lasting results for the people of Mongolia."
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Montenegro
Terminal Evaluation: NAP - Enhancing Montenegro’s capacity to integrate climate change risks into planning
"This well-written and neatly formatted report gives a useful, succinct account for the way forward to strengthen Montenegro’s efforts to realize its development and environmental goals. Its actionable inputs, especially its call to secure sustainable financing and build capacity of stakeholders, are critical at a time when there are huge gaps between climate finance flows and investments. Scaling climate finance will require use of intelligent tools by policy makers, innovations in the private sector and collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders to create new financial mechanisms and markets. These aspects are well highlighted in the report." - The Awards Panel
"A useful, succinct account for the way forward."Awards panel
The winning country office said: "The final evaluation of Montenegro’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP) project highlighted significant progress in governance, gender mainstreaming, and stakeholder engagement, while also identifying gaps in monitoring and finance. These findings informed the second phase of adaptation planning, including the development of a climate finance roadmap and the strengthening of horizontal collaboration. Key lessons emphasized the importance of institutional resilience, adaptive management, sustainable financing, and a robust regulatory framework. Despite external challenges, the project’s resilience and flexibility were commendable. Looking ahead, the focus is on advancing a more inclusive, data-driven, and financially sustainable approach to climate adaptation—aligned with national priorities and supported by strengthened governance and cross-sector collaboration."
Gender-Responsive Evaluation: UNDP Costa Rica
Terminal Evaluation: Seventh Operational Phase of the GEF Small Grants Programme in Costa Rica
"The evaluation scope of analysis and evaluation criteria integrated gender equality and empowerment of women (GEEW). The methodology used was gender responsive, and a gender-sensitive approach was used to understand how the Program has reached women, youth, and men in a differentiated manner. Furthermore, gender-disaggregated data were identified and used in the assessment. The findings, conclusions and recommendations reflect a gender analysis, and the report is well written with a clear flow of logic. The conclusion on GEEW indicates that the capacities and empowerment of women for strategic decision-making were strengthened across three dimensions: facilitating effective women’s participation, promoting decision making and recognition of rights. This is one of several points of this evaluation which could be useful to take into account in future gender-responsive evaluations." - The Awards Panel
"The methodology used was gender responsive [...] The findings, conclusions and recommendations reflect a gender analysis."Awards panel
The winning country office said: "Since 2018, the Costa Rica office has prioritized incorporating a gender perspective into all evaluations, driving impactful development changes. This approach has generated valuable evidence, enabling us to design tailored solutions that address the diverse needs of women and reflect their unique realities. Through these efforts, evaluations have become a crucial tool for fostering transformative, inclusive development based in the best practices and lessons learned collected over the years."
Gender-Responsive Evaluation: UNDP Indonesia
Terminal Evaluation: Combating Illegal and Unsustainable Trade in Endangered Species in Indonesia
"The evaluation questions were designed in a way that ensured the search and collection of gender equality and empowerment of women (GEEW)-related data. The evaluators used gender-responsive methodologies to measure the project’s contribution to advancing Gender Equality and Social Inclusion results. The evaluation considered the extent to which gender equality, women’s empowerment and human rights were taken into account in project design and delivery. Finally, project results and impact concerning GEEW were presented following a set of useful sub-headings: Participation and Representation, Training and Capacity Building, Data and Analysis, Awareness and Advocacy & Community Engagement and Support." - The Awards Panel
"The evaluation considered the extent to which gender equality, social inclusion, women’s empowerment and human rights were taken into account in project design and delivery."Awards panel
The winning country office said: "We greatly value the recognition of the Combating Illegal Wildlife Trade (CIWT) evaluation, which underscores our strategic commitment to gender equality, exemplified through the impactful " Inspiring Women Partners of Forest Rangers (Perempuan Inspiratif Mitra Polhut)" initiative, empowering women as leaders in wildlife conservation and community education. These efforts strongly align with our Gender Gold Seal standards, the new Indonesia Country Programme Document, and national priorities under Indonesia’s RPJMN 2025-2029, its Five-Year strategic plan. UNDP remains committed to leveraging these lessons to enhance sustainable biodiversity management, inclusive governance, and gender-responsive development—integral components in achieving Indonesia’s vision for sustainable development."
