Final report of final Evaluation of EU Support to the RCDSC in the ECOWAS - 01 2023

Methodology

The evaluation has been aiming at estimating the relationship between inputs, activities, outputs, outcomes and impacts as its main objective was to provide evidence of results and challenges for the EU-funded component, to EUDs to Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Togo, Ghana and Nigeria, RCSDC management team and senior officials, ECOWAS and its Member States and main entities, primarily WAHO (managing the RCSDC and the Regional Animal Health Centre – RAHC - the second specialized agency allowing for a full One Health approach), and NCIs. The evaluation covers the entire period of the programme (from 01/01/2019 to 30/08/202117), builds on the reports elaborated by the implementing partners (GIZ, WHO), and aims at providing an independent assessment of the RCSDC programme. Programme results were measured against its expected objectives, lessons learnt, relevant conclusions and recommendations, useful to orient future actions. Due consideration was also given to the peculiarity of the action embedded in the RPPP platform in the modality of a delegation agreement (Financing Agreement No.MZ/FED/040-214, signed on 27.02.2018) eventually readjusted, to contribute to mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic
impact on societies and institutions, with three addenda (27.08.2018; 22.06.2020; 01.03.2022). 

The Evaluation Report is based on the standard DAC evaluation criteria, namely: relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, and perspectives of impact. In addition, it estimates the EU added value, considering whether gender, environment and climate change were mainstreamed during the programme implementation; whether the relevant SDGs and their interlinkages were identified and whether the principle of Leave No-One Behind and a rights-based approach were followed during the programme implementation, its governance and monitoring.

The evaluation methodology is fully described in Annex 2. Data and information from the Desk Review and those collected during the Field Phase (through focus group discussions, key informant interviews and questionnaires submitted to key stakeholders and beneficiaries) were used to elaborate a scoring system detailed in Annex 3. Concrete recommendations, possibly contributing to driving future interventions were drawn on the evidence generated with the limitations described
below.

The process to retrieve and collect information was organized and documents were listed, identified, and analyzed, i.e. reports, minutes of meetings and reports received from GIZ project team at the regional level, from countries’ teams, from EUDs, from Donors, and the RCSDC staff. Additional documents were retrieved and downloaded from relevant websites (WAHO, ECOWAS, individual MS’ MoH and governmental portals, as well as World Bank, WHO, UNICEF, OCHA, and others as quoted in Annex 8 and Annex 10). The information gained was organized and analyzed following the MATRIX of evaluation questions (Annex 3). The table with evaluation questions is reported below.