Abstract
The Evaluability Assessment (EA) of 13 Programs and Accelerators (P/As) in CGIAR’s 2025-30 Research Portfolio under the 2030 Research and Innovation Strategy aligns with the System Council-endorsed Multi-Year Evaluation Plan (MYEP), under the 2025-27 Workplan for CGIAR's Independent Advisory and Evaluation Service (IAES) (SC/M21/DP5). The purpose of the EA synthesis was to identify portfolio-wide patterns in evaluability, assess the extent to which the Portfolio is positioned for credible future evaluations, and make recommendations to strengthen evaluability across the system.
The synthesis found that while the Portfolio demonstrates strong conceptual design and improved institutionalization of monitoring, evaluation, learning and impact assessment (MELIA), important constraints continue to limit evaluability in practice. These include weakly operationalized theories of change, fragmented evidence and learning systems, uneven integration of gender, equality and inclusion, short-term outcome horizons, limited evaluation readiness, and weak links between resources and performance. The synthesis offers four system-level recommendations to support stronger mid-line evaluations and more coherent portfolio-wide learning, accountability, and evidence generation across CGIAR, namely:
- Strengthen operational pathways for intervention logic and evidence generation
- Build an integrated MELIA-F & Finance architecture
- Formalize evaluation readiness as a system requirement
- Establish Portfolio-level evaluability governance
The status of implementing above recommendations by CGIAR management is monitored in the CGIAR’s tracker here.
Explore the IAES Evaluability Assessment (EA) Resource Hub.
Citation
Jersild, A., Lenne, J., Gullotta, G., Molinari, M. M., Negroustoueva, S. 2026. Evaluability Assessments of CGIAR’s Portfolio 2025-2030: Synthesis Report. Rome: CGIAR Independent Advisory and Evaluation Service (IAES), Evaluation Function. https://iaes.cgiar.org/evaluation
Author(s)
Jersild, A., Lenne, J., Gullotta, G., Molinari, M. M., Negroustoueva, S.
Publisher
Independent Advisory and Evaluation Service (IAES)
