The OECD/DAC Criteria for International Development Evaluations: An Assessment and Ideas for Improvement
Main Article Content
Abstract
The five evaluation criteria from the Development Assistance Committee of the Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC) have been a strong foundation for international development evaluation since 1991. They have been the most prominent and widely adopted criteria used for aid evaluation by most bilateral and multilateral donor agencies, as well as international non-governmental organizations (INGOs). However, critiques of the quality of development aid evaluation are still abundant. Thus, it is reasonable to question how those criteria can be improved. This paper provides a critical look at the five DAC criteria and proposes major recommendations for changes, including revisions of definitions, addition of key missing criteria, and discussions about the level of importance of the criteria. If followed, these changes could contribute for increasing the quality of evaluations for the purposes of (re)funding, program changes, and other decision options.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Copyright and Permissions
Authors retain full copyright for articles published in JMDE. JMDE publishes under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY - NC 4.0). Users are allowed to copy, distribute, and transmit the work in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes, provided that the original authors and source are credited accurately and appropriately. Only the original authors may distribute the article for commercial or compensatory purposes. To view a copy of this license, visit creativecommons.org
References
Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP). (2006). Evaluating humanitarian action using the OECD-DAC criteria: An ALNAP guide for humanitarian agencies. London: Overseas Development Institute.
Chianca. T. C. (2007). International development Evaluation: An analysis and policy proposals. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo.
Clements, P. (2005). Inventory of evaluation quality assurance systems. Unpublished manuscript prepared for the United Nations Development Program.
DANIDA (2006). Evaluation guidelines. Copenhagen, Denmark: Evaluation Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.
Davidson, E. J. (2005). Evaluation methodology basics: The nuts and bolts of sound evaluation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
https://doi.org/10.4135/9781452230115
Goldenberg, D. A. (2001). Meta-evaluation of goal achievement in CARE projects: A review of findings and methodological lessons from CARE final evaluations, 1994-2000. Retrieved January 31, 2007 from http://www.care.ca/libraries/dme/CARE%20Documents%20PDF/CARE%20MEGA%20Evaluation%20Synthesis%20Report.pdf
Goldenberg, D. A. (2003). Meta-evaluation of goal achievement in CARE projects: A review of findings and methodological lessons from CARE final evaluations, 2001-2002. Retrieved January 31, 2007 from http://www.kcenter.com/phls/MEGA%202002.pdf
Kruse, et al. (1997). Searching For impact and methods: NGO evaluation synthesis study. A report prepared for the OECD/DAC expert group on evaluation. Retrieved January 28, 2007 from http://www.valt.helsinki.fi/ids/ngo/
Leading Edge Group (2007). Evaluation gap update April 2007. Retrieved on August 9, 2007 from http://www.cgdev.org/section/initiatives/_active/evalgap/eupdate.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). (1992). Development assistance manual: DAC principles for effective aid. Paris: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). (1998). Review of the DAC principles of development assistance. Paris: DAC Working Party on Aid Evaluation.
Russon, C. (2005). Meta-evaluation of goal achievement in CARE projects: A review of findings and methodological lessons from CARE final evaluations, 2003-2004. Retrieved on January 31, 2007 from http://pqdl.care.org/pv_obj_cache/pv_obj_id_3F0964E46D34E15DD78EB2D03DF1DFEFE1FC0200.
Scriven, M. (1991). Evaluation thesaurus. (4th ed.) Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Scriven, M. (2007). Thekey evaluation checklist. Retrieved on September 7, 2007 from http://www.wmich.edu/evalctr/checklists/kec_feb07.pdf.
Savedoff, W. D., et al. (2006). When will we ever learn? Improving lives through impact evaluation. Retrieved on January 31, 2007 from http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/7973