Training on Impact Evaluation for Evidence-Based Development

Impact evaluation involves the assessment of changes as a result of projects, programs, or policies. This included both the intended and unintended interventions. This course aims at imparting skills to participants on the ways to carryout impact evaluations on their respective programs, policies, or projects. At the end of the course a participant sold be able to carry out a vigorous impact assessment with respect to specific interventions.

Course Duration

5 Days

Who Should Attend

• Development practitioners and project managers
• Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) specialists
• Policy makers and government officials
• NGO staff and program officers
• Donor agency representatives
• Researchers and academics interested in development studies

Organizational Impact

• Improve the effectiveness and efficiency of development programs by rigorously identifying which interventions truly work.

• Attract more funding and enhance the organization's credibility by providing robust, evidence-based proof of impact to donors and partners.

• Enable strategic decision-making by replacing assumptions with scientifically sound data on program outcomes.

Personal Impact

• Gain a highly technical and sought-after skill set that is essential for roles in research, policy, and senior program management.

• Position yourself as an expert who can prove the value of projects, contributing to high-level strategic discussions.

• Develop the professional competence to design and execute rigorous evaluations that inform and shape the future of development initiatives.

By the end of this course, participants will be able to

• Understand the principles and importance of impact evaluation in the context of development.
• Identify and apply appropriate methodologies for impact evaluation, including experimental and quasi-experimental designs.
• Design an impact evaluation study, including the development of a theory of change and evaluation questions.
• Collect, analyze, and interpret data to assess the impact of development interventions.
• Use impact evaluation findings to inform decision-making and improve project design and implementation.
• Communicate evaluation results effectively to stakeholders

Module 1: Introduction to Impact Evaluation

• Definition and purpose of impact evaluation
• Types of evaluations: formative, summative, process, and impact
• Theory of change and logic models
• Ethical considerations in impact evaluation

Module 2: Evaluation Designs and Methodologies

• Experimental designs: Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs)
• Quasi-experimental designs: Difference-in-Differences, Matching, Regression Discontinuity
• Non-experimental designs and qualitative methods
• Case studies and examples of different designs

Module 3: Data Collection and Analysis

• Data sources: primary and secondary data
• Survey design and sampling techniques
• Data collection methods: surveys, interviews, focus groups
• Quantitative data analysis: statistical techniques and software (e.g., STATA, R)
• Qualitative data analysis: coding and thematic analysis

Module 4: Using Evaluation Results

• Interpreting results and assessing the validity of findings
• Cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analysis
• Policy implications and recommendations
• Writing evaluation reports and presenting findings to stakeholders

Module 5: Practical Application and Case Studies

• Designing an impact evaluation for a real-world development project
• Case studies of successful impact evaluations
• Peer review and feedback session
• Developing an action plan for implementing impact evaluation in participants' own projects