LocationsEvaluation Excellence Awards 2026
May 12, 2026
Celebrating excellence in evaluation
The UNDP Independent Evaluation Office is delighted to announce the winners of the sixth Evaluation Excellence Awards, held on 12 May 2026.
The Outstanding Evaluation Award was given to three country offices:
- UNDP Afghanistan for the Final Evaluation of the Project Livelihood Improvement in Tajik Afghan Cross-Border Areas
- UNDP Nepal for the Mid-Term Review of Parliament Support Project
- UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States for the Final Evaluation of the Project Anti-Corruption and Integrity in Arab Countries
The Gender-Responsive Evaluation Award was given to one country office:
- UNDP Bosnia and Herzegovina for the Final Evaluation of the Project Translating the SDG Framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina Into Sustainable and Inclusive Growth
Evaluations are a vital component of programme and project management and decision-making in UNDP. They provide evidence of what works and what doesn’t, identify factors that help or hinder the achievement of objectives, and provide lessons to improve future programming.
This year, a Special Recognition was given to UNDP India for the mid-term review of its country programme 2023-2027.
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Afghanistan
Final Evaluation of the Project Livelihood Improvement in Tajik Afghan Cross-Border Areas
The Panel said the following about this evaluation: "Even in the absence of baseline information, the evaluator team delivered a high-quality evaluation that stands out for clarity and strategic value, methodological rigor and nuance, an explicit consideration of sources of bias, the acknowledgement of alternative explanations of observed results and an overall set of actionable, well justified, recommendations and lessons."
The winning country office said: "We are honored to share this award with UNDP Tajikistan and the more than 200,000 Afghan and Tajik small-scale farmers, entrepreneurs, women, youth, and persons with disabilities across the border regions reached by the Project. In one of the world’s most complex operating environments, the evaluation delivered clear, actionable insights that directly informed decisions on the ground and translated into tangible improvements in people’s lives—strengthening incomes, resilience, and economic opportunities for vulnerable households, particularly women and youth. The findings guided adaptive changes to livelihood interventions, improved targeting of those most left behind, and reinforced conflict sensitive, market driven approaches, especially for women entrepreneurs."
"A high-quality evaluation that stands out for clarity and strategic value."
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Nepal
Mid-Term Review of Parliament Support Project
The Panel said the following about this evaluation: "A comprehensive and persuasive account of the transformative power of interventions that seek to promote inclusion through institutional and human capacity-building and stronger democratic governance systems. The evaluation stands out for a combination of strengths and enabling factors: strong evaluability conditions, pertinent ToR, robust methodology with a strong focus on inclusion and latent transformation, and a realistic understanding of the potential for structural change anchored in better governance and democratic inclusion."
The winning office said: "The Project used its Mid‑Term Review as a practical guide for course correction and future decisions. Findings prompted stronger engagement across federal, provincial, and local levels, while ensuring gender equality and social inclusion were integrated through gender‑responsive budgeting and audits. The project shifted from one‑off trainings to lasting knowledge products on lawmaking, oversight, climate finance, and digital innovation. Review insights also accelerated digital reforms, leading to the digitization of over 300,000 parliamentary records and wider use of online systems. Deeper collaboration with civil society, UN partners, and South‑South peers helped amplify results. Overall, these actions reflect a deliberate, evidence-based approach to translating review insights into lasting institutional change and holistic parliamentary development."
"A comprehensive and persuasive account of the transformative power of interventions that seek to promote inclusion."
Outstanding Evaluation: UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States
Final Evaluation of the Project Anti-Corruption and Integrity in Arab Countries
The Panel said the following about this evaluation: "This evaluation illustrates the mechanisms that can drive behavioural change in favour of integrity in politically complex contexts, the potential for spillovers from peer learning and regional synergies. Furthermore, it shows how the explicit adoption of inclusiveness lenses sheds light on persisting asymmetries of power and elite predominance in development interventions."
The winning office said: "The evaluation has validated the premise that regional frameworks expedite anti-corruption reforms in ways that isolated bilateral strategies cannot. The evaluation highlighted the critical importance of regional cooperation through facilitating peer learning among governments and CSOs, enabling practical skill transfer and knowledge exchange, and fostering innovative collective solutions to common challenges. Notably, the successful rollout of sectoral corruption risk management protocols—initially piloted in Tunisia and subsequently integrated into the public sectors of Jordan, Iraq, Palestine, and Lebanon—exemplifies this strategic advantage. Consequently, these insights have guided RBAS' decision to transition to Phase II of the project."
"This evaluation illustrates the mechanisms that can drive behavioural change."
Gender-Responsive Evaluation: UNDP Bosnia and Herzegovina
Final Evaluation of the Project Translating the SDG Framework in Bosnia and Herzegovina Into Sustainable and Inclusive Growth
The Panel said the following about this evaluation: "The evaluation systematically considered gender equality, human rights, disability inclusion, and the principle of Leaving No One Behind across all criteria and questions. All instruments were gender-responsive, designed to encourage participation from women and excluded groups, and to surface differentiated experiences across gender, social, and institutional identities. The data analysis intentionally sought to capture differentiated experiences—especially between women and men."
The winning office said: "We are truly honoured. This recognition confirms the Programme’s gender-transformative results and its contribution to advancing national priorities set out in the SDG Framework for Bosnia and Herzegovina. The findings and recommendations directly informed UNDP, UNICEF, ILO, IOM, and national stakeholders in designing the new Joint Programme on Accelerating Agenda 2030 in Bosnia and Herzegovina, implemented in partnership with Sweden. The key lesson learned is that lasting gender-transformative change requires equality to be embedded in governance, public finance, and economic systems, ensuring women are active decision-makers in shaping the country’s future development."
"All instruments were gender-responsive, designed to encourage participation from women and excluded groups, and to surface differentiated experiences across gender, social, and institutional identities."
Special Recognition: UNDP India
Mid-Term Review of the Country Programme 2023–2027
The Panel said the following about this evaluation: "One distinctive element of this evaluation is its application of a realist evaluation lens. The team operationalized key components of this approach in a way that is both meaningful and transferable to similar evaluations. As such, it can serve as a useful example for future evaluations seeking to deepen causal analysis while remaining aligned with DAC criteria and UNDP evaluation standards."
The winning office said: "The Mid-Term Review of the Country Programme 2023–2027, commissioned by the India Country Office, has generated critical insights on both internal performance and the evolving external context, informing a more strategic and forward-looking approach to programme delivery. Building on these findings, the Country Office is strengthening coherence across its portfolios, enhancing the use of data and evidence to inform decision-making, with greater emphasis on adaptive and responsive programming. The review has also reinforced the importance of strategic partnerships and integrated approaches in addressing complex development challenges at scale. The Country Office will continue to apply these insights to refine our strategies and ensure our work remains relevant, effective on the ground, and aligned with national priorities."
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