The Independent Evaluation Section (IES) delivers products and services in line with its three strategic pillars of mandated work.
Pillar 1: Evaluation Capacity Development and SDGs: IES supports UNODC staff in strengthening its capacity for planning, implementing and using evaluations. In addition, IES supports National Evaluation Capacity (NEC). Under this pillar, IES also develops Evaluation Guidelines, Templates and Tools (Unite Evaluations).
Read more below on Evaluation Capacity Development at UNODC. Click further below for more information about National Evaluation Capacity (NEC) and Evaluation and the SDGs.
For more information, see also the 2-pager IES Year in Review with achievements in relation to evaluation capacity development.
Dedicated evaluation capacity building efforts have been scaled up, with IES focusing on supporting UNODC staff at HQ and field offices through enhanced Evaluation Capacity Development (ECD) to strengthen the use of evaluation results and further the nexus between evaluation and UNODC mandates on drugs, crime and terrorism.
This includes an innovative pilot evaluation capacity development approach carried out in close coordination and collaboration between IES and UNODC's Liaison and Partnership Office in Mexico (LPOMEX). As part of this collaboration, IES developed and delivered evaluation training sessions to LPOMEX staff. Read more in IES Web Story: Evaluation Capacity Development: Innovative Pilot Activity in Mexico (English); (Spanish).
The training was later scaled up and delivered to UNODC staff in Latin America. IES' efforts in Mexico increased the efficiency by combining multiple evaluations into cluster evaluations and one over-arching in-depth evaluation. These efforts not only reduced costs and time investments but also increased the availability of relevant data for strategic decision-making.
In 2023, IES has held information sessions for UNODC project managers and evaluation focal points on the revised UNODC Evaluation Policy and evaluation processes.
IES is also engaging with the Strategic Planning and Interagency Affairs Unit (SPIA) on a joint collaboration on trainings on monitoring and evaluation to UNODC staff, including on the use of evaluation results.
IES also develops evaluation guidelines, templates and tools for evaluation management, including the innovative web-based tool, Unite Evaluations, which is used for all phases and processes of UNODC evaluations. All evaluations are further undertaken according to the Norms and Standards developed by the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG). For more information, see IES' website UNEG and other UN Resources.
For the key steps of an evaluation process at UNODC, see IES' website Evaluation Step by Step.
IES revised the UNODC Evaluation Policy in 2022, ensuring that UNODC continues to be a learning organization in which decisions are built on evidence and critical self-reflection to support the implementation of the UNODC Strategy 2021-2025.
To implement the new Evaluation Policy, IES revised the Independent Project Evaluation process to become more focused and shorter, while fully meeting requirements for evaluation within the UN as regards independence and credibility. The new process will help project managers to receive more timely and useful evaluation results to support evidence-based programming, continued learning and accountability.
See IES' website on Templates & Guidelines used for all UNODC evaluations, including templates and guidelines of the new streamlined process for Independent Project Evaluations at UNODC, as well as new guidance on inclusive, gender-responsive and human rights sensitive evaluations.
