New task force on evidence-based aid

Guro Nesbakken, Plan, Nikolai Holm, Save the Children, Ole Morten Stavland, Strømme Foundation, Gregory Gleed, Norwegian Refugee Council, Ottar Mæstad DLL/CMI, Øyvind Hetland, Red Cross, Øivind Fjeld-Solberg NCA, Adalei Broers, Norwegian Peoples Aid Photo: Pauline Lemaire

The Development Learning Lab (DLL) at CMI/UIB/NHH organises a new task force on evidence-based aid. The first in a series of three workshops took place in Oslo 14 October 2022.

The task force brings together representatives from the largest NGOs in Norway to discuss how to enable the organisations to act on and benefit from Norad’s recent initiative to increase the use of impact evaluations in Norwegian aid.

- Norad’s initiative presents both opportunities and challenges for the aid organizations. It offers opportunities for enhanced learning and improved outcomes by understanding better what works well and not, and why. At the same time, the organisations may lack capacities to initiate, manage, and implement such evaluations, which hampers their ability to act on the initiative, says Ottar Mæstad, the director of DLL.

The aim of the task force is to:

identify opportunities, challenges, barriers, and questions in relation the use of impact evaluations in humanitarian and development aid,
propose measures to overcome challenges and barriers, and
inform future decisions in Norad/MFA on how to promote evidence-based aid.

Ottar Mæstad

Research Professor / Special Adviser, Director Development Learning Lab