WHY EVALYOUTH?

Evaluation’s most vital long-term goal is to contribute to sustainable and equitable development. This goal depends on the production of high-quality evaluations that meet standards for quality dimensions such as utility, feasibility, propriety, accuracy, and evaluation accountability. However, an ongoing issue faces the global evaluation community: the pool of skilled evaluators is shallow, and demand far exceeds supply. Additionally, young evaluators are also under represented in many Voluntary Organizations for Professional Evaluators (VOPEs). The adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is expected to exacerbate this problem by drawing significant attention to evaluation. The challenge facing the global evaluation community and actors whose long-term goals rely upon high-quality evidence is:

How can we increase national, regional, and international capacity to produce high-quality evaluations?

In addition to the technical expertise of professional evaluators, the quality of evaluations depends on appropriate representation and participation from stakeholders. However, youth and young people are historically and frequently absent from evaluations of policies and programs that impact them, except as a potential source for data collection. If SDGs are to be fully realized, it is essential to prioritize the inclusion of youth and young people in evaluation processes. The need to include youth and young people in evaluation raises a secondary challenge for worldwide evaluators and those who commission and use evaluations:

How can we advocate for and include youth and young people in the evaluation process?

To address both challenges, EvalYouth was formed based on the Global Evaluation Agenda (2016-2020), known as the Eval2020 Agenda, which was developed and agreed upon during the Global Evaluation Week. Global Evaluation Week was held in Kathmandu, Nepal in November 2015, and was the culminating event during the International Year of Evaluation (EvalYear).