Evaluation of research on Norwegian Development Assistance

The ultimate goal of this evaluation was to contribute to improved effectiveness of Norwegian development assistance. The immediate purpose was to assess the amount, composition and independence of research on Norwegian development assistance, with a view to identify ways of strengthening independent research. An underlying assumption in the Terms of Reference was that a greater output of independent research is required to ensure that policy-makers have access to impartial, evidence-based analysis of the impact of different aid modalities in different countries and contexts.

The evaluation established a way to distinguish between external, independent as opposed to internal contract development research. Based on this distinction, the evaluation gave an overview of independent research on Norwegian development assistance during the period 1999-2008, including the major research programmes as well as other relevant research. The analysis took into account available results of international research on development assistance.