9.3.3 Evaluation
"… NHRIs themselves (often) undertake strategic planning exercises and develop and adopt good programs for action but may not adequately assess their capacity to implement their plans." 2
Evaluation is a broad term with a variety of meanings, depending on the context and the objectives. Here it is used to describe intentional and systematic efforts to assess the impact, quality or effectiveness of a particular intervention. It is through evaluative activities – formal evaluations, project evaluations, institutional performance assessments, etc. - that NHRIs and the UN can determine whether their work has succeeded. It is for these reasons that evaluation should be built into project design and is an essential part of knowledge management.
Evaluation is not only about accountability or determining how successful a project was, but it is also a tool for organisational development. Even if there is no UN project in place, UNCTs have an interest in supporting the NHRI review its own capacity before engaging in a project. They should ask to review any internal evaluations conducted by the NHRI or by other donors.
There are several entry points for this process:
- First and foremost are the recommendations by the ICC Sub-Committee on Accreditation issues after its review of the institution, if the NHRI was institution has been reviewed. These serve as a "road map" or programme of action for the NHRI. See Chapter 10 for further details.
- Second are the overall goals and targets in the strategic plan of the NHRI in the Establishment Phase (see Chapter 8), and in related action or operational plans.
- From the UNCT perspective, there are also the indicators and targets set out the Project Document and the Project Activity Framework pertaining to the NHRI. See Chapter 6.
- Specific areas of capacity that were developed in Chapter 8 can be assessed by the NHRI through a capacity assessment process that can provide a baseline for future programmatic interventions.
From the UNCT perspective, capacity assessments provide a useful lens through which NHRIs can determine whether or not they have done a good job in establishing institutional capacity and what the opportunities are for improvement. The notion of capacity assessment focuses on assessing the internal ability of the NHRI to do its work and, as a result, on the forward-looking opportunities for UNCT programming in areas where capacity is lacking. Capacity assessment is an evaluative process that can also "feed" into other evaluative process. Capacity Assessment is an analysis of current capacities against desired future capacities. The results can help to promote better understanding of capacity assets and needs, and these can in turn lead to the formulation of capacity development strategies for UNCT staff members to develop with NHRIs.
For an overview of steps in the capacity assessment process, see Annex 8 of Chapter 8: Sample Briefing Note for a Capacity Assessment of a NHRI.
From a programmatic perspective, UN project documents generally call for two evaluations: a mid-term review and an end of project evaluation. On-going evaluation is carried out through a Project Coordinating Committee. The project manager is usually assigned the task of preparing up-to-date material for this purpose. Representatives of UNCT should be active participants in these committees and make sure that reports are providing sufficient information to evaluate project performance so that corrective action may be taken. In addition, the NHRI's strategic plan can identify other appropriate points for internal evaluation efforts, and these too could go to the Coordinating Committee for review and information. Depending on the scope of the project, consideration might be given to having more frequent mini-evaluations aligned with the major stages of the project.
In situations where a summative or more formal evaluation is needed, the choice of a trusted independent evaluator with relevant expertise is crucial. In more informal, participatory exercises where the NHRI is self-evaluating, an expert evaluator can act as a coach or support through the process. In many of these instances, UNCTs will be asked for their support in securing an expert.
For a UN project, if an external evaluator is required, it is important to select someone with a degree of independence (i.e. not someone who was involved in the project itself), and who is familiar with NHRIs. The NIRM Section of the OHCHR and the UNDP have extensive experience working with the evaluation of NHRIs and can provide assistance with Terms of reference and selection of experts, in partnership with the UNDP. Consulting with NHRIs throughout the process is advisable.
It should not be forgotten that the status of an organisation with respect to the Paris Principles and its level of accreditation, if applicable, should be routine part of any assessment or evaluation. Readers should refer to Chapter 10 for further detail.