The Evaluation and Oversight Unit in UNEP was established in 1985. Various types of evalutions have been carried out since then in particular in-depth sub-programme and project evalutions in order to meet the requirements of UN's General Assembly and UNEP's Governing Council. Other evaluations and Management Studies have been carried out to meet the needs of the UNEP Management. The annual self-evaluation reporting of on-going projects is also part of the evalution function. The Evaluation and Oversight Unit (EOU) is charged with the responsibility for conducting, coordinating and overseeing evaluations within UNEP. This mandate covers all Programmes and projects of the Environment Fund, related trust funds, earmarked contributions and projects implemented by UNEP under the Global Environmental Facility (GEF). The activities of EOU to cover this mandate comprise management studies, in-depth sub-programme evaluations, project self-evaluations, and project evaluations, conducted with the lead of EOU. EOU also prepares an annual report to provide a synthesis of the evaluation findings and conclusions in a specific year. This section of the manual concentrates on project evaluations. The objective of evaluation in the UN is defined as “to determine as systematically and objectively as possible the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and impact of the Organizations activities in relation to their objectives” . It provides recommendations and lessons learned for improving future policy, programme and projects and establishes a basis for accountability. In UNEP evaluation provides information to;
Programme/project managers to provide guidance to tackle problem areas and to determine whether adjustments are required for continuation, and whether Programme/project activities should be expanded or replicated, and
Governments and Senior Management to enable them to examine the validity of Programme orientation.
