Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
It is a privilege to address the National Evaluation Capacities Conference here in Beijing, which is generously hosted by the People’s Republic of China. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to CIDCA and the Municipality of Beijing for their warm hospitality.
The conference is an opportunity to ask ourselves clear—but complex—questions:
How can we create responsive evaluation systems that contribute to good governance and promote inclusion? And how can these evaluation systems help to build stronger and more resilient institutions for future generations?
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed some of the deepest cracks in our systems around existing inequalities, inadequate social protection systems, as well as frail supply chains. This is exacerbated by an increasing number of violent conflicts. And we are no longer waiting for the climate emergency to draw near, as it is already changing lives and livelihoods around the world. As a result of these overlapping crises and weak development financing, only 17 percent of the SDG targets are currently on track.
But we can—and must—choose a different path.
In the Pact for the Future, which includes the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations, nations committed to learning from the past and taking the ‘whole-of-government approach’ to evaluating the effectiveness of policies implemented in safeguarding the needs and the interests of future generations.
So why is evaluation so intrinsically linked to the ‘new world’ we want to build?
As mis- and disinformation are spreading at an unprecedented speed and scale, responsive evaluation systems, backed by solid data, are crucial to providing state institutions with rigorous, reliable insights to address gaps in sustainable development.
Evaluations are also vital learning tools. They ask us to pause, reflect and understand the deeper consequences of our decisions. In our rapidly changing world, where challenges grow more complex by the day, such reflection is not a luxury, but a necessity.
China’s experience in poverty eradication is a prime example. Over the past four decades, China has lifted 770 million people out of extreme poverty. This remarkable achievement was made possible by leveraging sophisticated and comprehensive evaluation practices to identify challenges and monitor progress, allowing for the design of targeted interventions for maximum effectiveness.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
This brings me to the central question of how we can build responsive evaluation systems for the future.
First, we need to ensure that evaluation systems effectively perform their function. In any organization or government, having an independent evaluation function—protected from political and managerial interference—is essential. As the Administrator of UNDP, I am committed to safeguarding the independence of the evaluation function. I have encouraged evaluators to provide honest feedback, even if it was uncomfortable, because having accurate evidence of where we stand is where real progress begins. True responsiveness also requires having the right systems and institutional space to guide decision-making. To me, evaluation is an intrinsic element of planning and adaptive management.
Yet for evaluation data and insights to turn into action, we need to strengthen the evaluation culture, away from narrow notions of accountability. We need to create new spaces for dialogue where evaluators, managers and decision makers debate recommendations and decide the way forward.
This is the direction we are taking at UNDP. Over the past three years alone, UNDP conducted more than 1,000 evaluations across 130 countries, investing over US$40 million. These evaluations are helping us to make better decisions, including when it comes to driving inclusion. This has been the case of our support to access to justice, where evaluation insights by the IEO pivoted our programmes towards a more people-centred approach, improving the fairness, quality and oversight of justice systems.
We’ve also seen remarkable success stories in countries like Cambodia, where our evaluations are helping to make future social protection programmes more inclusive of women-led households. Or, consider Malawi, where evaluation evidence improved national coordination on climate adaptation, while urging further investments to enhance early warning to rural communities.
Second, we need to ensure that the voices of all people, including the youth, are heard. Responsive evaluations must be inclusive. Yet this does not always happen by default. At UNDP, we have learned that evaluations must actively engage marginalized communities from their very inception. That includes in the shaping and designing of questions—using methods and language that are accessible and culturally appropriate. It requires community engagement to build trust, and follow-up actions to demonstrate that community input is not only valued but also leads to change. And we are increasingly harnessing technology to do this, when possible and appropriate.
A prime example of this is the UNDP Evaluation of Youth Economic Empowerment, which used ‘sensemaking’ in gathering insights from young people around their economic empowerment journey. As a result, UNDP strengthened engagements with private companies to increase employment opportunities for young people.
Finally, we know the future is digital, with technologies spreading quickly, but this is not happening evenly. So, with the sheer number of new technologies out there, what are the key challenges and opportunities when it comes to evaluation?
Strengthening governance systems to deliver public goods and services—while enabling countries to listen to signals, monitor and evaluate public administrations, and respond to people’s needs—is essential. The High Impact Initiative on public sector transformation, FutureGov, co-led by UNDP, uses digitalization to enhance accountability and strengthen national evaluation capabilities.
Yet many countries are struggling with the collection and systematization of data needed for effective evaluation. UNDP is not merely offering technical training but also fostering a culture of accountability and learning.
We have seen that it also requires political will; the establishment of clear legal and institutional frameworks; and the creation of partnerships—government, civil society, academia and the private sector —to share information and create spaces for dialogue.
For instance, alongside the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group, UNDP co-founded GEI in 2020 to build more robust national evaluation systems and foster a culture of evidence-based decision-making in public policy. I am also proud that our UNDP IEO is breaking new ground in harnessing the power of AI for evaluation. Through our Artificial Intelligence for Development Analytics—AIDA—platform, we’ve made it possible for UNDP colleagues to efficiently access evidence and insights.
In Paraguay, a UNDP planning analyst shared that it takes her now only minutes to have an exhaustive overview of lessons from previous projects to integrate into new programmes. But technology alone is not a solution in isolation.
It is a means to an end, and it must be integrated with sound methodology, human judgement and a deep understanding of local contexts. To effectively implement the Global Digital Compact, evaluations must prioritize inclusive AI technology. And governments need to invest in digital capacities to make sense of information—and not be driven by them. That is essential to foster a culture of foresight to try to better anticipate the many challenges to come—and get ahead of them.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
As policymakers, practitioners and partners, we must do our part by making responsive evaluations a cornerstone of good governance in ensuring a brighter tomorrow. Progress often begins with a conversation, and before long it becomes a movement—like the idea to convene the first National Evaluation Capacities Conference in 2009.
We are already part of the movement.
With the knowledge, tools and determination to build a better tomorrow, let us ensure that we do not simply transfer challenges to the next generation, but leave them with the ‘torch of choice’ and the opportunities to shape their own futures.
Thank you.
