We have been thinking a lot about the right to privacy lately, in relation to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and our role in Oxfam as impact evaluation advisers. The incorporation of this right in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights reflects a broad recognition that privacy is fundamental to dignity and freedom. We know that when individuals are …
Podcast: The challenges of measuring women’s empowerment
[buzzsprout episode=’2559187′ player=’true’] In this episode we share Oxfam’s journey in measuring women’s empowerment in our impact evaluations. Our Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Lead, Marina Torre, speaks to Simone Lombardini, Impact Evaluation Lead, who has been working in this area of work. Simone delves into the details on what methodologies have been used, the challenges the team has faced and …
What does it mean to be a responsible evaluator? Five key reflections from the 13th EES Biennial Conference
In this blog, Marta Arranz, Andrea Azevedo and Alexia Pretari share their reflections from the 13th European Evaluation Society (EES) Biennial Conference, commenting on some of the emerging debates, and inviting other evaluators to join in and share their views. It was our first EES conference and we were approaching it with curiosity and excitement. Three intense days ahead. A …
DAC criteria: The hand that rocks the cradle
Stephen Porter gives his thoughts on the OECD’s latest consultation on the revision of the Development Assistance Committee’s evaluation criteria (DAC criteria). The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has launched a consultation on revising the Development Assistance Committee’s (DAC) evaluation criteria through a survey. The DAC criteria are important because they inform how international development is undertaken within commitments …
Leaving no one behind in our evaluation practice
Stephen Porter reflects on the importance of understanding why people are left behind in development practice and acknowledging what goes unseen and unsaid in evaluations. Leave no one behind is a call for action within the Sustainable Development Goals. The Goals are meant to be met for all people, especially groups who are marginalized and vulnerable. In the Sustainable Development …
Sampling strategies for gendered impact evaluations
How can evaluators ensure that gendered power dimensions are accounted for in impact evaluations? Alexia Pretari reflects on the relative merits of two approaches. Oxfam’s approach to building resilience involves bringing about changes ‘in the very structures that cause and maintain poverty and injustice’ (transformative capacity), and building active citizenship involves addressing power imbalances, including building power within. While working …
Improving data quality with digital data collection
Emily Tomkys Valteri, Alexia Pretari and Simone Lombardini share practical tips to help improve quality in survey data collection, and introduce the latest case study in the ‘Going Digital’ series. Sometimes survey data doesn’t add up: two household members are married to each other and yet have different marital statuses, consent statements have not been fully read, percentages of income …
How to measure women’s empowerment so that it reflects the views and opinions of all women interviewed in a study
Ensuring all voices are heard in evaluation processes is challenging but essential. Natalie Naïri Quinn from Oxford University and Oxfam’s Simone Lombardini present their analysis from a discrete choice experiment conducted in Tunisia. Measuring women’s empowerment has become more and more important for assessing development projects aimed at supporting women. Different measurement tools are available; but while most of them …
Accommodating uncertainty in advocacy and campaign evaluation
Jim Coe and Rhonda Schlangen, experienced advocacy evaluators, discuss the evolving challenge of monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning in the context of influencing work. Over the last couple of decades, there has been a seismic shift in thinking about evaluating influencing work. As we argue here, we need to think critically about where we’ve got to and how to manage …
Reflecting on the use of qualitative comparative analysis
Guest blog by Johannes Meuer, Anne Ellersiek, Daniel Shephard and Christian Rupietta – the evaluation team who undertook a meta review of Oxfam’s effectiveness reviews of policy influence, citizens voice and good governance initiatives. During the last few years, there has been increasing interest in using Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) as an alternative method for evaluation of policy change or advocacy …