Evaluation: The German Civil Peace Service Presentation of Key Policy Lessons

1. Evaluation: The German Civil Peace ServicePresentation of Key Policy Lessons Dr. Thania Paffenholz Oslo 14 February 2011

2. Content • What is the German Civil Peace Service? • Evaluation Information • Key findings/conclusions • Policy Lessons

3. 1. The German Civil Peace Service • Focus: • Civil Society Peacebuilding • Institutional set-up: • Instrument of BMZ (Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany) • Joint programme executed by German GO + NGOs • Started in 1999 • Modus: • Deployment of European Experts to national and local CSOs • Funding of local experts and project activities • Operational in 50 countries • 583 experts deployed • Overall budget 194 Mio Euros

4. 2. Evaluation Information I. • Programme evaluation in Germany and 8 countries of operations commissioned by BMZ • Period under evaluation: 1999-2010 • Evaluation duration: June 2009-April 2011 • Goal: Learning + Accountability • Process/Phases reflects 2 goals: • Inception • Self-evaluation • Pilot case study • Case studies • Syntheses • Quality control • Follow up

5. 3.Evaluation Information II • Combination of Evaluation Approaches • Overall: Utilisation-focus + Real World • Effectiveness assessment (key challenge): • Results-based • Outcome-oriented • Theory/Research based • Criteria • Used: DAC Eval criteria + Policy Coherence, Complementarity, Coordination • NOT found useful as additional criteria: • Linkages, Coverage, Values => is part of Relevance or/and Effectiveness • ‘Big picture’, because is covered under Policy Coherence

6. 3. Key findings/conclusions • Strategy • CPS programme to be continued as it is a relevant complementary instrument BUT substantial changes required • Overall Profile of Instrument weak • Strategic gap needs to be closed (e.g. Country Strategies) • Operational • Better Mix of cooperation modalities + flexibility in way Expert Deployment is conducted • Many localised results not sufficiently impacting on broader CPPB • Effective Programmes and projects showed high level of horizontal and vertical linkages • Mainstreaming of Gender and sustainability weak • Management and Admin • Results-based monitoring and implementation weak but started • Admin procedures not fully supportive of programme goals • Steering capacity in Ministry needs to be strengthened

7. 4. Policy Lessons I • Civil Society Peacebuilding necessary but not sufficient -> part of coherent strategy • CPPB work needs to be Context-specific • Conflict Analysis not enough • Understanding of peacebuilding needs key • Analysis MUST be linked with implementation! • Integrating future scenarios/trends essential • Ongoing conflict monitoring a must • BASELINE studies for specific focus/sector of intervention required

8. 4. Policy Lessons II • Programme designs for REACH • Clear focus + Linking grass-roots, national and int. level (ex. Cambodia) • Working with established institutions + key CS actors that can take over + have power to socialise people • Work with innovative groups and organisations • Combining project activities with dissemination strategies • Strategic partnering between peace and dev orgs • Results-based management

9. 4. Policy Lessons EVAL • Evaluating Effectiveness of CPPB under data constraints remains a key Challenge • Pressure to produce concrete eval results besides weak data set remains high • Reconstructing baselines is often a myth • Reconstructing theories of change is possible BUT .. • Innovative combination of eval approaches needed (results, outcome + theory and /research) • Forget about Impact Assessment for CPPB??? • 3C: Policy Coherence, Complementarity, Coordination are essential Criteria for CPPB work in all levels