The International Center for Maize and Wheat Improvement (CIMMYT) is a CGIAR centre with a long tradition of impact assessment (IA). Until recently, such work had focused on the rates of adoption of improved germplasm and returns on investment. Limited attention was directed at measuring impacts...

Innovation in the food and agriculture sector is frequently short-circuited by a lack of trust and communication between actors in the market chain. To overcome these problems and stimulate innovation, the Participatory Market Chain Approach (PMCA) brings together small farmers, market agents,...

Horizontal evaluation is a flexible evaluation method that combines self-assessment and external review by peers. We have developed and applied this method for use within an Andean regional network that develops new methodologies for research and development (R&D). The involvement of peers...

Evaluation processes of all types, including monitoring, review and impact assessment, offer unique opportunities for learning and provide useful feedback on what works and what doesn’t, and the reasons for success or failure. Involving staff members, partners and beneficiaries in the...

Utilization-focused evaluation (UFE) is based on the principle that an evaluation should be judged by its utility. So no matter how technically sound and methodologically elegant, an evaluation is not truly a good evaluation unless the findings are used. UFE is a framework for enhancing the...

Partnerships can be an extremely effective way to harness additional skills and resources and minimize costs. Collaboration allows scientists (and other partners) to access a broad range of expertise and fosters a multi-disciplinary approach, both of which are often required when tackling...

Questions of cause and effect are critical to assessing the performance of programmes and projects. When it is not practical to design an experiment to assess performance, contribution analysis can provide credible assessments of cause and effect. Verifying the theory of change that the...

Changing the Rules of Development: Institutional Innovation in Rebuilding China’s Shanty Towns -- Slum Upgrading Policies of China’s Shanty Towns -- Financing Development of Shanty Towns Upgrading -- Systems of Land and Security of Tenure -- Housing Development and Sustainable -- Economic...

According to the Timor-Leste Demographic and Health Survey, in 2016 about 46 percent of all children less than five years old are stunted, 24 percent are wasted, and 40 percent are anemic. Rural children are more at risk of being malnourished than urban children; boys are at greater risk than...