Learning from our evaluations

Evaluations contribute to organizational learning and help stakeholders to hold UNEP accountable for contributing to development results at different levels.

Learning occurs through building ownership of the evaluation process, identifying good practices and lessons for uptake in future project and programme planning, design and implementation; providing feedback for adaptive management and positive learning of ongoing initiatives, and distilling useable recommendations to improve programme coherence, operational performance and inform strategic decision-making.

The work of the Evaluation Office enhances learning through targeted knowledge products.

Evaluation Synthesis Report

The Evaluation Synthesis Report summarises findings drives findings derived from the work of the UNEP's Evaluation Office over the most recent biennium. It provides an evaluative assessment of UNEP’s biennal programme and project performance. The report helps UNEP, donors and partners reflect on, and learn from, its performance through evaluative evidence and lessons from design and implementation. Highlights of aggregated performance trends across evaluations for the biennium are presented.

Read the Evaluation Synthesis Report 2022-2023 here

 

Lessons Learned

Learned lessons are based on the explicit findings of an evaluation and anchored in its conclusions. Lessons are rooted in real project experiences and have the potential for wider application and use.

The Evaluation Office maintains a database of lessons derived from evaluations conducted over the past several years collates lessons drawn from completed evaluations to make them more targeted to users’ areas of interest. Past work includes a framework for sharing lessons learned. 

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OIOS Evaluation Dashboard

The Office of Internal Oversight Services of the United Nations Secretariat assessed the Evaluation Office as part of a study of evaluation capacity and practice in every entity in the Secretariat. The ‘Evaluation Dashboard’ includes an independent assessment based on indicators of evaluation practice. The most recent OIOS assessment (2023) found that "UNEP has all the elements of a strong evaluation system in place".