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Are We Making a Difference? Global and Local Efforts to Assess Peacebuilding Effectiveness
Deep Insights

Stacey L. Connaughton, Jasmine R. Linabary (eds.)

Lanham et al.: Rowman & Littlefield (2024), xxvii, 320 pp.

"Sections of the book engage in critical reflection on what peacebuilding effectiveness is and who gets to decide, provide practical examples and case studies of the successes and failures of assessing peacebuilding work, and support innovative strategies and tools to move the field forward. Chapter ... more

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Building Trusted Media in a Fragile Setting: An Evaluation of Radio Ndeke Luka in Central African Republic

Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz

Michigan State University (2024), 8 pp.

"Can the impact of a news radio station on a highly vulnerable population in a crisis-affected country be measured? The installation of new FM transmitters for Radio Ndeke Luka in Beloko, Birao, and Obo in the Central African Republic offered an opportunity to carry out a field study measuring the i ... mpact of our radio station before and after its introduction in these remote regions of the country. The results of this study reveal a tangible impact and a shift in listeners’ perceptions, particularly regarding misinformation. The Central African Republic, marked by a weak central state, widespread poverty, and recurring intercommunal conflicts, is particularly vulnerable to misinformation. Radio Ndeke Luka, a project of Fondation Hirondelle in CAR, plays a crucial role by broadcasting reliable news 24/7 in both French and Sango across the country. Thanks to funding from the European Union, new FM transmitters for RNL were installed between December 2021 and April 2022 in remote areas of the Central African Republic, specifically in Beloko, Birao, and Obo. This provided an opportunity to assess the radio’s impact on local populations before and after the installation. Investigators from the local network of IMMAR Research & Consultancy followed a protocol developed by Dr. Jeff Conroy Krutz, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Michigan State University. This protocol ensured a random selection of adult participants and gender balance. In total, over 1,700 people were interviewed before the transmitters were installed, and more than 1,800 afterwards, within the same communities across the three localities. Measured Impacts Increase in Audience: RNL became the most listened-to radio station in the targeted areas within months of the new transmitters going live. Relevance and Impartiality: 52% of listeners considered RNL’s programs essential to their daily lives. Trust and impartiality scores also improved between the pre- and post-launch periods. Trust in RNL far exceeded that of other locally accessible radio stations. Combating Misinformation: Residents of the three areas reported significantly greater confidence in their ability to distinguish fact from fiction after the installation of the transmitters, which facilitated access to RNL programs." (https://www.hirondelle.org) more

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A Valuing Impact Toolkit for ICT Investment

NEF Consulting; Digital Impact Alliance (dial) (2020), 124 pp.

"ICT4D projects are known for having social, economic, and environmental impacts that are difficult to capture. Investments in digital infrastructure and innovation often have high up-front costs with largely medium-to-long-term benefits, not quick, short-term outcomes desired by policy makers. The ... more

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Evaluation: A Systematic Approach
Key Guides

Peter H. Rossi, Mark W. Lipsey, Gary T. Henry (eds.)

Los Angeles et al.: Sage, 8th ed. (2019), xviii, 342 pp.

"Evaluation: A Systematic Approach is the best-selling comprehensive introduction to the field of program evaluation, covering the range of evaluation research activities used in appraising the design, implementation, effectiveness, and efficiency of social programs. Evaluation domains are presented ... more

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Measuring Peacebuilding Cost-Effectiveness

Institute for Economics & Peace (2017), 68 pp.

"1) This paper provides a conceptual framework for counting and categorising peacebuilding activities as well as a hard working-definition of the actions that count as peacebuilding. One of the primary inhibiting factors for assessing peacebuilding cost-effectiveness has been the lack of commonly ag ... reed definitions and confusion about what activities constitute peacebuilding. Without this, it is simply not possible to measure and compare the cost-effectiveness of peacebuilding activities. 2) A comprehensive accounting of global peacebuilding expenditures from 2002 to 2013, using the working definition that was developed in partnership with the UN Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO) and Peacebuilding Support Group. This is the first known attempt at comprehensively accounting for peacebuilding activities — without this data it is not possible to empirically assess different peacebuilding strategies and assess the cost-effectiveness of them or individual peacebuilding actions. This data shows that peacebuilding activities are unevenly distributed geographically and thematically and are prioritised to differing extents by international donors. 3) A detailed case study of peacebuilding expenditures is presented to analyse an example of peacebuilding success — Rwanda from the wake of genocide to 2014. This analysis shows US$18.35 billion was committed to peacebuilding expenditures in Rwanda from 1995 to 2014. That means peacebuilding commitments in Rwanda from the international community were at least $27 per capita each year for the past 15 years. This demonstrates that the assistance associated with peacebuilding is not exhausted in the five or even ten years following a conflict, meaning that the success of peacebuilding cannot be judged on whether there has been a relapse into a conflict after such a short period of time has elapsed. If some moderate level of peacebuilding expenditure indeed leads to a reduction in violence, and if Rwanda is illustrative of the levels of peacebuilding required to reduce violent conflict, then the current levels of global peacebuilding expenditure are insufficient to build global peace. 4) A global model of the cost-effectiveness of peacebuilding, based on the case study findings and the data generated from them. Using 20 years of peacebuilding expenditure, Rwanda’s experience as a baseline, and combining this with IEP’s research on the global cost of conflict, the paper presents scenario analysis and a model of peacebuilding cost-effectiveness. It finds that using conservative assumptions, the cost-effectiveness ratio of peacebuilding is 1:16, showing that increased funding for peacebuilding would be hugely beneficial not only to peacebuilding outcomes but in terms of the potential economic returns to the global economy. This means that if countries currently in conflict increased or received levels of peacebuilding funding to appropriate levels estimated by this model, then for every dollar invested now, the cost of conflict would be reduced by $16 over the long run. Projected forward ten years from 2016 this would save US$2.94 trillion in direct and indirect losses from conflict. However, achieving this outcome would require an approximate doubling of peacebuilding toward the 31 most fragile and conflict affected nations of the world. Of course, this does not preclude other important factors for peacebuilding success such as the external influence of other states or the role of political elites, but rather establishes a working framework for resources required for programmatic peacebuilding activities. 5) In order to take this research forward, this paper also provides detailed approaches for a future research agenda to look deeper into the ultimate aim of assessing the cost-effectiveness of particular peacebuilding interventions. Through drawing upon existing impact evaluations on peacebuilding interventions in Liberia, it demonstrates a basic approach to how the cost-effectiveness of specific peacebuilding interventions could be compared within a specific context. However, this approach demonstrates the long-term needs for a fully-fledged research agenda in this area. Impact evaluations are resource intensive and require a very significant upscaling of research. Currently, it is estimated that there are only 61 impact evaluations globally on programmes with peacebuilding outcomes. In other domains such as health or education there are hundreds and thousands of such impact evaluations, which highlights the clear need for more impact evaluations in peacebuilding." (Executive summary) more

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Advocacy for Development: Effectiveness, Monitoring and Evaluation

Jennifer B. Barrett, Margit van Wessel, Dorothea Hilhorst

Wageningen University (2016), 94 pp.

"Monitoring and evaluation of advocacy for development is an emerging field. Many civil society organisations, donors and evaluators are now involved with advocacy. Questions of how to understand and assess programmes are urgent. This e-book seeks to contribute to practical capacity on this front on ... more

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Can Mass Media Cause Change? A Randomised Control Trial Finds Out

BBC Media Action (2016)

"Can the mass media cause changes in an audience’s knowledge, attitudes and intention to practise behaviours? At BBC Media Action, we have just successfully conducted a randomised control trial (RCT) to investigate this chain of causality in a prime time health TV drama in Bangladesh." (Introducti ... more

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Tools and Methods for Evaluating the Efficiency of Development Interventions

Markus A. Palenberg

Bonn; Berlin: Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) (2012), xiv, 117 pp.

"The present paper explores approaches for assessing efficiency. Efficiency is a powerful concept for decision making and ex post assessments of development interventions but, nevertheless, often treated rather superficially in project appraisal, project completion and evaluation reports. Assessing ... more

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Monitoring Self-Effectiveness: A Manual to Strengthen Outcome and Impact Oriented Project Management

Eberhard Gohl, Bernward Causemann, Verena Brenner

Bonn: Association of German Development NGOs (VENRO) (2011), 86 pp.

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Evaluation und Qualitätsentwicklung: Eine Grundlage für wirkungsorientiertes Qualitätsmanagement

Reinhard Stockmann

Münster: Waxmann (2006), 376 pp.

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Independent Media Development Abroad: Challenges Exist in Implementing U.S. Efforts and Measuring Results

Washington, DC: United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) (2005), 49 pp.

"The Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development obligated at least $40 million in fiscal year 2004 for the development of independent media, including activities such as journalism and business management training and support for legal and regulatory frameworks. About 60 p ... more

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The Virtuous Spiral: A Guide to Sustainability for NGOs in International Development

Alan Fowler

London: Earthscan (2000), 238 pp.

"Sustainability is crucial for all institutions involved in international development. This work offers practical guidance on how to achieve it. There are three main kinds of sustainability and a section of the book is devoted to each: making the impact of the organization's work sustainable, ensuri ... more

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Prüfen und lernen: Praxisorientierte Handreichung zur Wirkungsbeobachtung und Evaluation

Eberhard Gohl

Bonn: Verband Entwicklungspolitik deutscher Nichtregierungsorganisationen (VENRO) (2000), 83 pp.

"Dieses Arbeitsheft ist eine empfehlenswerte Einführung für alle, die sich erstmals mit Evaluierung im Entwicklungsbereich beschäftigen. In klar abgegrenzten Schritten beschreibt die Broschüre die Voraussetzungen für eine Erfolgskontrolle von Projekten, die Planung und die Durchführung von Eva ... more

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Communication for Social Change: A Position Paper and Conference Report

New York: Rockefeller Foundation (1999), 37 pp.

"In the pages that follow, the two authors argue that communication for social change is a distinct way of doing communications – and one of the few approaches that can be sustained. Such sustainability is largely due to the fact that ownership of both the message and the medium – the content an ... more

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Qualitative Evaluation: Introducing Qualitative Methods

Ian Shaw

London: Sage (1999), 226 pp.

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Nord-Süd Aktuell: vol. 13, Nr. 4

Hamburg: Deutsches Übersee-Institut (1999), 721 pp.

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Wirkungen und Nebenwirkungen: Ein Beitrag von Misereor zur Diskussion über Wirkungsverständnis und Wirkungserfassung in der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit

Hermann Dolzer, Martin Dütting, Doris Galinski, Lutz R. Meyer, Peter Rottländer

Aachen: Misereor (1998), 178 pp.

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Outcomes and Impact: Evaluating Change in Social Development

Peter Oakley, Brian Pratt, Andrew Clayton

Oxford: International NGO Training and Research Centre (INTRAC) (1998), 177 pp.

"Building on the experience of many different agencies, this book provides a comprehensive discussion of the difficulties, dilemmas and opportunities of understanding the outcomes of social development programmes and projects. The book shows that while there are no easy solutions to evaluating impac ... more

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Understanding Farmers' Communication Networks: An Experience in the Philippines

Rome: FAO (1995), vi, 74 pp.

"For several years there has been an awareness in the Philippines of the need to ensure that investments in natural resources research produce options which farmers may adapt and adopt. The Philippines Council for Agriculture and Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) 1991 Review highlighted th ... more

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Making a Difference: Measuring the Impact of Information on Development. Proceedings of a workshop held in Ottawa, Canada, 10-12 July 1995

Paul McConnell (ed.)

Ottawa: International Development Research Centre (IDRC) (1995), vi, 246 pp.

"This book reports on an international research program investigating the impact of information on development. It presents a series of case studies and essays that describe practical, operational experience with methodologies to assess the impact of information. Amongst many issues, authors examine ... more

Are We Making a Difference? Global and Local Efforts to Assess Peacebuilding Effectiveness Deep Insights

Evaluation: A Systematic Approach Key Guides

Are We Making a Difference? Global and Local Efforts to Assess Peacebuilding Effectiveness
Deep Insights

Evaluation: A Systematic Approach
Key Guides