Evaluations of private sector development programmes look at what changed to the workings of the system, and whether these changes are scalable, resilient, and sustainable. We present an evaluation lens that primarily qualifies changes to the systemic nature of food provisioning in markets. It converts theoretical frameworks into ‘antennae’ receptive to early signs of systemic effects of inclusive agribusiness that fosters food and nutrition security. The tools for this theory-informed approach were developed and applied in 2SCALE, a Dutch-funded programme aiming to incubate inclusive agribusiness and contribute to food and nutrition security goals in Africa. The article reflects on what to monitor to detect early signs of systemic effects and how monitoring can be embedded in unfolding business and partnering processes. It concludes that taking a theory-informed approach gives directionality to strategising and planning, and enhances capacities of partners in inclusive business projects to lead actions towards realising systemic effects.
{"title":"Monitoring Systemic Change in Inclusive Agribusiness","authors":"S. Vellema, G. Schouten, M. Faling","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.107","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.107","url":null,"abstract":"Evaluations of private sector development programmes look at what changed to the workings of the system, and whether these changes are scalable, resilient, and sustainable. We present an evaluation lens that primarily qualifies changes to the systemic nature of food provisioning in markets. It converts theoretical frameworks into ‘antennae’ receptive to early signs of systemic effects of inclusive agribusiness that fosters food and nutrition security. The tools for this theory-informed approach were developed and applied in 2SCALE, a Dutch-funded programme aiming to incubate inclusive agribusiness and contribute to food and nutrition security goals in Africa. The article reflects on what to monitor to detect early signs of systemic effects and how monitoring can be embedded in unfolding business and partnering processes. It concludes that taking a theory-informed approach gives directionality to strategising and planning, and enhances capacities of partners in inclusive business projects to lead actions towards realising systemic effects.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89725936","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Systemic change is universally desirable and poorly defined. This article seeks to refine a practitioner-developed framework – Adopt-Adapt-Expand-Respond (AAER) – for conceptualising systemic change, and offers case studies to demonstrate its utility in planning for and measuring such change. To do so, the article firstly seeks to define the nature of a system and the components of change within that system. It also discusses the relevance of behaviour change among both actors and institutions in conceptualising systemic change. Finally, in exploring the utility of AAER throughout the implementation of development interventions, it examines the role of the framework in adaptive management: utilising data on observed changes to alter programme intervention tactics.
{"title":"Systems, Sapiens, and Systemic Change in Markets: The Adopt-Adapt-Expand-Respond Framework","authors":"B. Taylor, J. Lomax","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.103","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.103","url":null,"abstract":"Systemic change is universally desirable and poorly defined. This article seeks to refine a practitioner-developed framework – Adopt-Adapt-Expand-Respond (AAER) – for conceptualising systemic change, and offers case studies to demonstrate its utility in planning for and measuring such change. To do so, the article firstly seeks to define the nature of a system and the components of change within that system. It also discusses the relevance of behaviour change among both actors and institutions in conceptualising systemic change. Finally, in exploring the utility of AAER throughout the implementation of development interventions, it examines the role of the framework in adaptive management: utilising data on observed changes to alter programme intervention tactics.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90309928","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
If inclusive business is to realise wide and sustained development impacts, it is likely to depend on crowding in of other public and private actors. Assessing the contribution of inclusive business to crowding in is difficult because the phenomenon usually only manifests after project completion, and the complex operating environment complicates the process of evidencing a link between intervention and outcome. With donors placing increasing emphasis on demonstrating impact, innovative approaches to assess crowding in are needed. This article presents an adapted form of process tracing to assess the contribution of inclusive business to crowding in. It reports on the contribution of CREATE, an inclusive agribusiness project, to the crowding in of malting companies in Ethiopia’s barley value chain. Though predominantly focusing on demonstrating a programme’s contributions to crowding in, the article offers suggestions for how this process tracing-based exercise may support the fostering of inclusive agribusiness practices more broadly.
{"title":"Assessing Contributions Collaboratively: Using Process Tracing to Capture Crowding In","authors":"M. Faling","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.108","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.108","url":null,"abstract":"If inclusive business is to realise wide and sustained development impacts, it is likely to depend on crowding in of other public and private actors. Assessing the contribution of inclusive business to crowding in is difficult because the phenomenon usually only manifests after project completion, and the complex operating environment complicates the process of evidencing a link between intervention and outcome. With donors placing increasing emphasis on demonstrating impact, innovative approaches to assess crowding in are needed. This article presents an adapted form of process tracing to assess the contribution of inclusive business to crowding in. It reports on the contribution of CREATE, an inclusive agribusiness project, to the crowding in of malting companies in Ethiopia’s barley value chain. Though predominantly focusing on demonstrating a programme’s contributions to crowding in, the article offers suggestions for how this process tracing-based exercise may support the fostering of inclusive agribusiness practices more broadly.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"3 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75365752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The complexities of markets and market environments are felt in the design and the evaluation of market systems development (MSD) programmes. The authors reflect on a recent evaluation of an MSD programme in Nepal in which they used contribution analysis as a means of navigating these complexities. The planned niceties of the proposal soon departed ways from the reality on the ground, forcing the authors to adopt a more iterative evaluation approach, while ensuring evaluative robustness. This article outlines the iterative process and what the authors have learned regarding the applicability of contribution analysis within a theory-based evaluation, in a dynamic, changing environment.
{"title":"Using Theory-Based Evaluation to Evaluate Systemic Change in a Market Systems Programme in Nepal","authors":"Edward Hedley, Gordon Freer","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.104","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.104","url":null,"abstract":"The complexities of markets and market environments are felt in the design and the evaluation of market systems development (MSD) programmes. The authors reflect on a recent evaluation of an MSD programme in Nepal in which they used contribution analysis as a means of navigating these complexities. The planned niceties of the proposal soon departed ways from the reality on the ground, forcing the authors to adopt a more iterative evaluation approach, while ensuring evaluative robustness. This article outlines the iterative process and what the authors have learned regarding the applicability of contribution analysis within a theory-based evaluation, in a dynamic, changing environment.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75461345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
An increasing consensus exists in the impact evaluation literature on using detailed theory-based evaluations to evaluate complex programmes such as private sector development (PSD) programmes. At the same time, PSD managers expect periodic and timely (so-called ‘real-time’) input from evaluators to improve programmes throughout their implementation. This article presents insights from real-time theory-based monitoring and evaluation shaped by the needs of policymakers in two Dutch PSD programmes. To learn about their experiences, we held in-depth interviews with researchers and policymakers involved in the evaluation. The interviews indicated that theory-based evaluation improved reporting on the programmes’ contribution to higher-level impact areas and credibly quantified the importance of that contribution. The insights showed too that real-time monitoring and evaluation of PSD programmes requires more flexibility in data collection and increased interaction with mid-management.
{"title":"The Search for Real-Time Impact Monitoring for Private Sector Support Programmes","authors":"F. van Rijn, H. Pamuk, J. Dengerink, G. Ton","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.106","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.106","url":null,"abstract":"An increasing consensus exists in the impact evaluation literature on using detailed theory-based evaluations to evaluate complex programmes such as private sector development (PSD) programmes. At the same time, PSD managers expect periodic and timely (so-called ‘real-time’) input from evaluators to improve programmes throughout their implementation. This article presents insights from real-time theory-based monitoring and evaluation shaped by the needs of policymakers in two Dutch PSD programmes. To learn about their experiences, we held in-depth interviews with researchers and policymakers involved in the evaluation. The interviews indicated that theory-based evaluation improved reporting on the programmes’ contribution to higher-level impact areas and credibly quantified the importance of that contribution. The insights showed too that real-time monitoring and evaluation of PSD programmes requires more flexibility in data collection and increased interaction with mid-management.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"62 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80968009","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The private sector has become an important partner in development interventions that aim to make market systems more favourable for smallholders and low-income consumers of food. How to evaluate these inclusive business programmes is the central theme of this IDS Bulletin. It presents real-world experiences of practitioners and academics using theory-based evaluation. This introductory article highlights the approaches and methods used to assess systemic change and provide learning for adaptive management. It acknowledges the limits to attributing outcomes to programmes alone and proposes a way to generalise about effectiveness where outcomes are highly contingent on a specific contextual embedding. The article explores the synergy of the iterative reflections on the theory of change, the analytical approach of realist evaluation, and the conceptualisation of changes in firms’ practices as emerging from behaviour systems where the motivations, opportunities, and capabilities of firms are not equally distributed.
{"title":"Introduction: Contribution, Causality, Context, and Contingency when Evaluating Inclusive Business Programmes","authors":"G. Ton, S. Vellema","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.102","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.102","url":null,"abstract":"The private sector has become an important partner in development interventions that aim to make market systems more favourable for smallholders and low-income consumers of food. How to evaluate these inclusive business programmes is the central theme of this IDS Bulletin. It presents real-world experiences of practitioners and academics using theory-based evaluation. This introductory article highlights the approaches and methods used to assess systemic change and provide learning for adaptive management. It acknowledges the limits to attributing outcomes to programmes alone and proposes a way to generalise about effectiveness where outcomes are highly contingent on a specific contextual embedding. The article explores the synergy of the iterative reflections on the theory of change, the analytical approach of realist evaluation, and the conceptualisation of changes in firms’ practices as emerging from behaviour systems where the motivations, opportunities, and capabilities of firms are not equally distributed.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"644 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77029753","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Market systems development (MSD) programmes aim to influence private actor behaviour to promote markets that work better for the poor. This article aims to inform theory-based evaluation (TBE) of such programmes, arguing that a stronger analysis of market actor behaviour change is needed. It proposes a ‘behaviour change framework’ (BCF), building on recent advances in the TBE literature. These focus attention on behaviour change as contingent on the alignment of actor capability, motivation, and opportunity, influenced by the meso and macro contexts. The article applies the BCF to three theory-based MSD evaluations to illustrate its applicability and draw lessons on its use. The BCF can be used to identify evidence gaps and support more compelling explanations of what worked and under what conditions. Such evidence can inform future MSD programmes, and enable them to better stimulate systemic change in line with poverty reduction.
{"title":"Understanding Behaviour Change in Theory-Based Evaluation of Market Systems Development Programmes","authors":"J. Thorpe","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.109","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.109","url":null,"abstract":"Market systems development (MSD) programmes aim to influence private actor behaviour to promote markets that work better for the poor. This article aims to inform theory-based evaluation (TBE) of such programmes, arguing that a stronger analysis of market actor behaviour change is needed. It proposes a ‘behaviour change framework’ (BCF), building on recent advances in the TBE literature. These focus attention on behaviour change as contingent on the alignment of actor capability, motivation, and opportunity, influenced by the meso and macro contexts. The article applies the BCF to three theory-based MSD evaluations to illustrate its applicability and draw lessons on its use. The BCF can be used to identify evidence gaps and support more compelling explanations of what worked and under what conditions. Such evidence can inform future MSD programmes, and enable them to better stimulate systemic change in line with poverty reduction.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"34 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90204940","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
An impact evaluation of a pro-poor market system development programme, ‘Making Markets Work for the Poor’ (M4P), poses several methodological issues for evaluators. M4P interventions intend to change the contextual conditions in which stakeholders take business decisions so that it triggers change processes in the wider social system and ultimately benefits poor people. An impact evaluation design for such a programme thus needs to be robust enough to adequately capture these systemic outcomes, acknowledging dynamic changes in intervention delivery as well as in market conditions over time. Theory-based evaluation can provide learning and accountability when it incorporates methods that allow a critical reflection on the key causal steps in an intervention’s theory of change. We present our learnings about indicators and methods to reflect on the importance of the contributions to market system change of a large M4P programme in Ethiopia.
{"title":"Assessing the Contribution to Market System Change of the Private Enterprise Programme Ethiopia","authors":"G. Ton, B. Taylor, A. Koleros","doi":"10.19088/1968-2022.105","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2022.105","url":null,"abstract":"An impact evaluation of a pro-poor market system development programme, ‘Making Markets Work for the Poor’ (M4P), poses several methodological issues for evaluators. M4P interventions intend to change the contextual conditions in which stakeholders take business decisions so that it triggers change processes in the wider social system and ultimately benefits poor people. An impact evaluation design for such a programme thus needs to be robust enough to adequately capture these systemic outcomes, acknowledging dynamic changes in intervention delivery as well as in market conditions over time. Theory-based evaluation can provide learning and accountability when it incorporates methods that allow a critical reflection on the key causal steps in an intervention’s theory of change. We present our learnings about indicators and methods to reflect on the importance of the contributions to market system change of a large M4P programme in Ethiopia.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2022-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78464331","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This is the glossary for IDS Bulletin 52.2: China and International Development: Knowledge, Governance, and Practice.
这是IDS公告52.2:中国与国际发展:知识、治理与实践的术语表。
{"title":"Glossary: China and International Development: Knowledge, Governance, and Practice","authors":"J. Gu","doi":"10.19088/1968-2021.126","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2021.126","url":null,"abstract":"This is the glossary for IDS Bulletin 52.2: China and International Development: Knowledge, Governance, and Practice.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2021-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85572158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
China’s international cooperation strategies are gradually changing due to evolving views about the limits of its internationalisation approach, which has traditionally mainly focused on building governmental and business relationships. Intensified interactions with low-income countries in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative are perceived to benefit from an increased role for its domestic non-governmental organisations (NGOs). This article explores China’s initial steps in enabling the domestic NGO landscape to internationalise by looking at this development from an organisational capacity perspective. By assessing five key organisational characteristics of 36 Chinese foundations engaging in international cooperation, we find that the average organisational capacity for international cooperation is still limited but shows gradual improvement. While they all comply with government regulations in governance and several foundations have large budgets and capacity for domestic operations, our findings suggest that only a few currently mobilise substantial human and financial resources for their international activities.
{"title":"Chinese Foundations and the Challenge of ‘Going International","authors":"Lindan Tan, H. Huyse","doi":"10.19088/1968-2021.124","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.19088/1968-2021.124","url":null,"abstract":"China’s international cooperation strategies are gradually changing due to evolving views about the limits of its internationalisation approach, which has traditionally mainly focused on building governmental and business relationships. Intensified interactions with low-income countries in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative are perceived to benefit from an increased role for its domestic non-governmental organisations (NGOs). This article explores China’s initial steps in enabling the domestic NGO landscape to internationalise by looking at this development from an organisational capacity perspective. By assessing five key organisational characteristics of 36 Chinese foundations engaging in international cooperation, we find that the average organisational capacity for international cooperation is still limited but shows gradual improvement. While they all comply with government regulations in governance and several foundations have large budgets and capacity for domestic operations, our findings suggest that only a few currently mobilise substantial human and financial resources for their international activities.","PeriodicalId":47532,"journal":{"name":"Ids Bulletin-Institute of Development Studies","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2021-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81682659","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}