One of the pitfalls inherent in the independence construct is isolation. This hurdle must be overcome, given that evaluation is increasingly called upon to influence decision makers and to measure whether development interventions are transformative. “How do we measure whether interventions are really transformative in changing the overall quality of life? – Dr Nadioo asked – Firstly, methodological sound practice remains, but we must ensure that complexity and scale are integrated. Secondly, there must be engagement with all stakeholders. Every voice matters. If you don’t bring people on board, at the beginning, through the process and in the end, you are likely to become almost isolated. You’re independent but isolated and hence you can have no influence. That is, of course, a challenge which you need to deal with”, the IOE Director underscored. The keynote address was followed by an insightful panel discussion and a lively question and answer session, during which participants learned about what multilateral development banks (MDBs) and development organizations can do to make evaluation more innovative in order to face the most pressing challenges in the coming
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decade. Panelists included Dr Jos Vaessen (Deputy Head, Global Evaluation Initiative), Dr Emmanuel Jimenez (Director General, Independent Evaluation, Asian Development Bank), Dr. Mohammed Alyami (Director, Development Effectiveness Department, Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector), Ibrahima Dit Thierno Lo (Principal Executive Assistant, Executive Office of the President, IsDB), Hamdi Ahmedou (Senior Manager, Monitoring and Evaluation, International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation), and Dr. Abdel Hameed Bashir (Evaluation Advisor, Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa). Dr Naidoo also contributed to other sessions of the symposium. On the first day of the event, the IOE Director chaired the session titled ‘Country-Level Development Solutions’, in which IEvD presented a thought-provoking summary of its recent evaluations of country programming and strategies. Dr Naidoo also participated as a panellist in session one, titled ‘Future Solutions of Development Operations Efficiency’, in which IEvD presented its recent evaluations of operations efficiency; and session four, titled ‘Looking Forward- Future Frontiers of Development Evaluation in MDBs’. The latter focused upon how the
