Evaluations in international development

The Urban Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) Phase-II, implemented by Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL) and Lutheran World Foundation – World Service (LWF) in collaboration with Icelandic Church Aid (ICA), aimed to address youth unemployment and associated poverty in Kampala's urban slums from 2020 to 2023. With funding from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), the project targeted vulnerable youth aged 13 to 24, offering skills development and sexual reproductive health (SRH) services. An endline evaluation was completed in March 2024.

The overall results are positive, the project has pronounced alignment with the socio-economic challenges faced by youth in Kampala, strategically aligns with global and national development frameworks, and addresses key issues outlined in Uganda's National Youth Employment Policy. Despite challenges, to include implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, the project reached set outcomes within set timeframe. This includes community sensitisation, youth recruitment, skills development, and timely course completion. 66% of youth with employable skills secured employment, but obstacles like discrimination, lack of networks, and inefficient feedback mechanisms highlight areas for improvement in supporting youth employment. Increased access by youth to SRH services, indicates a positive trajectory. Access to SRHR services rose to 91%, and 82% of youth expressed positive changes as it pertains to risky sexual behaviors. 

The need for diverse funding sources is highlighted to ensure long-term sustainability. 18 recommendations are set forth, divided into different spheres: project specific recommendations; feedback and training; livelihood and employment; youth empowerment; gender mainstreaming and safeguarding; and recommendations at the institutional level.

Endline evaluation of the Youth Empowerment Project in Uganda

The Household Welfare Initiative (HWI) is an intervention that is being implemented by the Rural Action Community-Based Organisation (RACOBAO) with funding from the Icelandic Church Aid (ICA) through funds sourced from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). The project aims at ensuring that vulnerable groups, especially people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV); as well as widows and orphans and vulnerable children from child-headed households (CHH), have improved household hygiene and sanitation and have improved capacity to challenge their vulnerability by 2025.This external mid-term evaluation was completed in March 2024. 

Results confirm that all the planned outputs have been achieved. The provision of the houses has not only addressed the housing challenges but has managed to elevate the social status of the households resulting in their integration into their communities to an extent. The potential of economic strengthening strategies is apparent.  Some beneficiaries are already witnessing changes at outcome level such as the ability to send children to school. The efficacy of training volunteers is already emerging as changes at outcome level such as reduction in early pregnancies are starting to emerge. The programme's commitment to gender equality, as outlined in its documentation, is evident. The impact of COVID-19 on project implementation emerges as a crucial aspect as it impacted on the pace of constructing houses, increased expenses, and limited counsellors' movements. Finally, environmental considerations within the project revealed a conscientious effort taken up to an extent, towards environmental sustainability. However, there remains room for further enhancement of environmentally conscious efforts within the project. RACOBAO faces a monumental task ahead, as they must contend with the increasing workload of managing existing housing units while also accommodating the construction of additional ones in the remaining years.  14 recommendations are set forth in the evaluation, which include environmental sustainability integration and addressing concerns of dependency and diversification of the use of resources.

Mid-term evaluation of the Household Welfare Initiative (HWI) Project in Rakai and Lyantonde districts, Uganda

To help ameliorate the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene situation in fishing communities in Sierra Leone, UNICEF and the Government of Iceland, in collaboration with the Government of Sierra Leone, jointly implemented the 'Improving Access to WASH Services in Tombo, Goderich, and Konacrydee project (2019 to 2023)'. The goal of the project is to contribute to reducing the potential waterborne diseases at 10 wharves in Tombo, Goderich and Konacrydee landing station through WASH services.

The project was deemed relevant and successful in meeting the main needs of the fishing communities and was also found complementarity with other projects.

Open defecation has reduced and although access to water has improved, it seems unlikely that the project will have reached the entire population of the three communities (60,307 persons) as planned.

The WASH facilities have brought positive outcomes on the environment and health through the reduction of waterborne diseases, better school attendance and reduction of conflict around water access. Finally, the recycling centres provided new skills and livelihoods for the youths.

The project was mostly efficient. Various cost-cutting strategies were applied, such as utilising experienced partners, engaging local communities to provide labour during construction, purchasing supplies locally and benefiting from free lands from the communities. Nevertheless, there was some lack of collaboration and challenges in selection of sites and designs of structures.  Delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the depreciation of the local currency that has put a lot of strain on procurement budgets. Efforts were made to strengthen community engagement around sustainability, but challenges still remain.

Primary lessons set forth include to institutionalise the WASHCOM within the relevant legal frameworks to secure its mandate amidst existing governance structures at community level; ensure a baseline study prior to implementation; integrate a more robust social and behaviour change component; and to prioritize the involvement of women in the design and implementation of the project. Five strategic recommendations are set forth and four operational recommendations.

Summative evaluation of the “Improving Access to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) in Rural Fishing Communities Programme in Sierra Leone (2019 – 2023)

The evaluation was conducted by an evaluation team from GOPA, commenced in early 2024 and was completed in October.

Findings indicate that the GRÓ programmes are highly relevant to and fully aligned with Iceland’s international development cooperation policies and strategic goals and are a flagship product of Icelandic international development cooperation support.

The GRÓ programmes complement the wider development efforts of Iceland undertaken at the international level and in partner countries.  However, there is only partial direct evidence of coordination of effort or of synergy created between the different efforts supported by the MFA with those of the GRÓ programmes. The GRÓ programmes are closely aligned with partner countries’, regions’ and target groups’ needs. The evaluator recognizes the significant progress achieved since 2022 in the development of a standard framework to define the collective GRÓ programme intervention theory of change (ToC) including the definition of the intended results of the programmes (outputs, outcomes, and impact). The programmes offer a coherent mix of interventions, with good potential for realization of synergies across the different outputs.

The GRÓ programmes have effectively delivered the intended capacity development results, supporting young to mid-career professionals and partner organizations in 76 countries. During 2018-2023, the programmes supported 534 individuals via in-depth training and research (fellowship and scholars), 1699 individuals via short training courses, and reached 39,161 learners via online learning content. Feedback of the direct beneficiaries and core partner organizations attests to the relevance and quality of the training provided. 73% among the 2018-203 GRÓ cohort report that they have substantially or extremely advanced in their professional career while 17% report moderate career advancements thanks to the programme participation. Alumni feedback indicates that 90% of the 2018-2023 fellows have used the training to advance their contribution in their field/area of work,

The operational efficiency at the level of the GRÓ programmes is good. Delivery of the intended programme results, in terms of quantity and quality, is in a timely manner. Linked to the fellowship programme in Iceland, the average cost per fellow across the four programmes has marginally fallen in real terms, post-inflation, compared to the average costs reported for the 2012-2016 period. Adoption of the GRÓ Results Framework significantly strengthens programme monitoring, oversight and steering systems, via its inclusion of common key performance indicators against which each programme should collect and report data. Linked to the institutional changes in 2020, with the formal operation of the GRÓ Centre as umbrella agency of the programmes, functioning under the auspices of UNESCO as a C2C, the evaluator judges that operational efficiency of the set-up is adequate. While still a work in progress, longer-term collaboration with UNESCO partners has potential to empower GRÓ alumni as local change agents.

The prospects for sustainability of the GRÓ programme results and benefits are good.  The vast majority of GRÓ alumni have successfully utilized their new knowledge, understanding, and skills to advance their contribution in their technical field of work in their country. Partner organizations for the GRÓ demonstrate a good level of ownership of the benefits they obtain from the partnership with the programmes.  The key factors hindering the sustainability of the programme results relate to the challenges that the alumni report linked to directly utilizing and applying their knowledge, due to insufficient resources or medium-term financial framework of their institution to promote significant reform initiatives. The lack of a medium-term financial framework for GRÓ hinders the programmes’ capacity to plan capacity development initiatives with core partner organizations over the time needed to build sustainability.

The prospects for longer-term development effects (impact) of the GRÓ programmes are good. The evidence strongly suggests that the GRÓ programmes, chiefly via the GRÓ alumni, but also in partnership with long-term institutions/organizations in the partner countries, have delivered concrete changes within the countries to achieve development change and real impact. Tthe achievements of the 2018-2023 cohort are impressive as to progress delivered in terms of project and initiatives linked to the SDGs.

The GRÓ programmes have positively contributed to advancing the cross-cutting priorities of Icelandic policy (i.e. gender equality, human rights, and climate change and the environment). 

The evaluation presents 10 key lessons learned drawn from the evaluation findings:

1. The branding value of the GRÓ programmes rests on the Iceland name, and the high reputation built by the capacity development programmes in their areas of expertise over the long-term.
2. The high quality of the fellowship programme in Iceland is the foundation for the programme’s success, but it is logically limited in terms of quantitative outputs deliverable in Iceland itself.
3. The careful targeting of the GRÓ programme support for short courses in specific countries or regions, delivered over several years, is a viable way to concentrate the focus of effort, and ensure that a critical mass of capacitated individuals is trained, as complement to the fellowship alumni.
4. GRÓ programme long-term partnerships with key partner organizations in focus countries has resulted in the development of local training offer (of short, medium, or longer-term duration), and of partners’ organizational capacity to deliver training programmes. The medium-term goal is that the partner organizations take over the full operation and ultimately funding of courses.
5. The success of the programmes in building local partnerships for the development and delivery of short courses is replicable in other focus countries or regions, for which it is crucial that programmes identify reliable local partners and have a medium-term planning perspective.
6. As a flagship product of Icelandic international development cooperation support, the long-term funding commitment of the Government of Iceland, provided via the MFA, is fundamental to the continuation of the programmes and successful expansion of training offered in partner countries.
7. An evidence-base of success stories and longer-term contribution of the alumni is required to ensure that key stakeholders in Iceland (including the MFA) are aware of the programme successes, and that GRÓ Centre can better fulfil its basic advocacy role for the GRÓ programmes.
8. The adoption of the GRÓ Results Framework significantly strengthens programme monitoring via its inclusion of common indicators against which each programme should collect and report data.
9. GRÓ should collect data on impacts at the micro-, meso-and macro-level via systematic formal tracer surveys of GRÓ alumni over the medium- and the longer-term period of their career.
10. Good opportunities exist to establish formal GRÓ alumni country chapters in leading countries for the programmes and in the promotion of links between the alumni and development partners.

The evaluation sets forth 15 recommendations pertaining to the GRÓ Centre, seven for GRÓ GTP, seven for GRÓ GEST, four for GRÓ GTP and four for GRÓ LRT, 37 recommendations in total. 

• GRÓ Final Evaluation Report
• GRÓ Evaluation Executive Summary
• Case-study for GRÓ GEST
• Case-study for GRÓ GTP
• Case-study for GRÓ FTP
• Case-study for GRÓ LRT
• Evaluation report for GRÓ GEST
• Evaluation report for GRÓ GTP
• Evaluation report for GRÓ FTP
• Evaluation report for GRÓ LRT
• GRÓ Evaluation infogram
• GRÓ Evaluation survey

Haven Rescue Home (HRH) is an Icelandic civil society organisation (CSO) that was established in 2015 as a charity in Kenya with the primary mission of providing shelter, accommodation, care and protection to teenage mothers and their infants, as well as to pregnant teenagers. HRH collaborates closely with local children’s services, and all admissions to the home are facilitated through this partnership. Since its establishment HRH has sheltered 75 pregnant young girls and teenage mothers.

The Haven Rescue Home is in clear alignment with relevant policy frameworks and plans, the Constitute of Kenya and the Government of Kenya plans and policies, intended SDGs and the CSO mission. The project was greatly affected by COVID-19, but slowly resumed to full capacity in the first year under assessment (2021). HRH effectively adapted to difficult situations that affected unsatisfactory compliance to planned timeframe and budget with the ability to secure additional co-funding. Continuous funding to sustain day-to-day operations is also important and considered for the evaluation. Accountability in resource allocation and utilization was evaluated to be satisfactory, with HRH’s simple and transparent management structure. The benefits of the project can be seen through the short to medium-term impact the home has already had on the lives of these young girls and their children and although the founder of HRH has some positive ideas on how to develop the HRH project, the sustainability trajectory is currently lacking.

Six recommendations are set forth in the evaluation, five of which are directed towards the HRH and one to the MFA.

Final report: evaluation of the Haven Rescue Home in Kenya

SOS Children’s Villages Malawi is implementing the Family Strengthening Programme (FSP) in Ngabu, Chikwawa District (2022–2025), funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) Iceland. The programme supports 1,500 children and young people from 400 families, providing care, protection, and education while addressing risks of abandonment.

 Findings of the evaluation indicate that The FSP aligns with various policies and strategies, including those of the Government of Malawi, SOS Malawi, and the Government of Iceland. The evaluation highlights the strong synergies between the programme and other development initiatives in Ngabu, such as government efforts, other NGOs, and community-based structures, which enhance service delivery and support more beneficiaries. The evaluation found that SOS Iceland's involvement positively contributed to the programme's implementation. The programme has made notable progress in supporting vulnerable households toward self-reliance and reduced vulnerability through care, protection, and health services. The programme exceeded its target by training 320 caregivers in positive parenting but external shocks like natural disasters continue to challenge these gains. The program has also made substantial progress in increasing access to education for vulnerable children and young people, with enrolment rising from 296 at baseline to 969 at midterm. At mid-term, the programme had exceeded its targets for resilient livelihoods, training 322 families in strategies like VSLAs, crop husbandry, afforestation, and goat production. As of June 2024, the programme has successfully trained two local community-based organizations (CBOs) in child protection, enhancing the capacity of Child Protection Committees (CPCs), CBOs, and Mothers' Support Groups (MSGs) to handle cases such as early marriages and child abuse.

 The evaluation highlights the adequacy and availability of resources for the programme, including financial and human resources. Despite budget constraints, SOS Malawi has managed to implement activities without compromising quality, using cost-cutting measures. Financial resources were disbursed timely, ensuring smooth implementation.

 The programme focuses on strengthening households, particularly those with children at risk of losing parental care or those who have already lost it. It aims to create a nurturing environment by improving family capacity, resulting in reduced child abuse, exploitation, and trafficking, with no new trafficking cases reported since the programme began. Additionally, households have reported better income generation, enabling them to meet essential needs like food.

 The evaluation highlights the sustainability of the programme's activities and outcomes after its completion. Environmental sustainability is supported through training on disaster preparedness and promoting eco-friendly farming practices. However, certain interventions, such as support for VSLAs and business enterprises, will still require ongoing assistance from government departments, which may face resource constraints that could affect their ability to provide support after the programme ends.

 Five operational recommendations are set forth in the evaluation and nine strategic recommendations for long-term planning, policy alignment, and systemic changes.

Mid-term Evaluation Report: The Family Strengthening Programme: SOS Children‘s in Malawi Programme.

Internal review of the collaboration of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) with the National Committees of UNICEF and UN Women, as well as the United Nations Association (UNA) Iceland was completed in February 2023. 

The review assessed the arrangement of the collaboration for Iceland´s international development cooperation. The collaboration has changed in recent years, whereas framework agreements with the National Committees was abolished and the three parties were eligible to apply for grants under a competitive grant scheme for partners to increase development awareness. 

The relevance of the collaboration is considerable, particularly as it pertains to added value for international development cooperation. On one hand is awareness raising, education and outreach among the Icelandic public about development cooperation and the SDGs. On the other is to engage the public to mobilize funds to support the work of UN Women and UNICEF in developing countries. In this respect, the results generated by the National Committees are irrefutable, but both are world leaders and serve as an example by other donor countries. Furthermore, all three partners have collaborated successfully with the MFA for numerous years.

Iceland’s collaboration with UN Women and UNICEF has gained increased value in recent years. In Iceland´s policy, UN Women and UNICEF are defined as priority partner institutions in multilateral development cooperation, and in line with this, Iceland´s core contributions have increased. Increased ODA also calls for active engagement, dialogue, and advocacy by Iceland within multilateral forums. To support such efforts, it is important for the MFA to engage domestic partners.  

Primary findings indicate that great interest for collaboration exists amongst all parties. However, efficiency and effectiveness have somewhat been lacking in recent years, as administrative burdens have increased and simultaneously predictability has decreased. Eight recommendations are set forth. It is suggested that the MFA assesses the feasibility of adopting framework agreements with all three partners, and seek ways to maximize synergies with other work carried out by the MFA within the sphere of international development cooperation. It is also essential to ensure that funds are used for development cooperation and that the MFA can effectively monitor and evaluate efforts. Finally, it is suggested that the MFA revises grant schemes to maximize efficiencies.

Internal review of collaboration with UN Women and UNICEF National Committees and the United Nations Association, Iceland (available in Icelandic only)

Iceland participated in an evaluation reference group for a final evaluation of the project “Promoting Women and Girl’s effective participation in peace, security and recovery in Mozambique”. The project was funded by the Government of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway. The project aimed to promote the active and full participation of women and girls in peace, security and recovery processes in Mozambique at all levels. It had a national scope and it was set to support three main areas: (1) the drafting, consolidation and dissemination of the first National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security in Mozambique (NAP 1325), (2) the creation of governmental technical capacity to promote and monitor the implementation of the NAP 1325 in all provinces of the country, (3) the provision of integrated services for women and girls who are victims of violence and supporting their economic recovery and independence.

With a duration of four years, the project started in December 2017 and was granted a Non-Cost Extension (NCE) until March 2022. It was implemented in 17 districts and 7 provinces of the country with a total budget of approximately 4.5 million dollars. The findings indicate that the project has met its objectives despite contextual change caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, cyclones and escalation of the conflict in Northern Mozambique. One of the primary findings is that the project contributed very significantly to the advancement of the WPS agenda in Mozambique, expanded the space for women's political participation and recognition of their role in peacekeeping.

An evaluation of GRÓ's master’s and doctoral scholarship programme was completed in August 2023, but the GRÓ programmes consist of the Gender Equality Studies and Training Programme, the Geothermal Training Programme, the Land Restoration Training Programme, and the Fisheries Training Programme. This is an external evaluation where mixed methods approach was applied, employing a desk review, focus group discussions, individual interviews with key stakeholders, and an online survey. 

The evaluation finds that the scholarship programme falls within the scope and aims of the current policy for International Development Cooperation 2019-2023, as well as the one proposed for 2024-2028. The four programmes have a high return rate of students to their country of origin. The evaluators suggest the need for a pragmatic approach that recognises the contribution of knowledge creation per se and its potential impact on institutional capacity building.

Ten recommendations are set forth: 

1. GRÓ central should promote the SP as a strategic continuation of the postgraduate diploma, offering a pioneering example of how sound educational inputs can maximise the impact of ODA funds towards realising international development cooperation goals and the SDGs.
   
   
2. The four training programmes in collaboration with GRÓ central are encouraged to explore different options to develop a coordinated and clustered approach to post scholarship support to strengthen the efficiency and effectiveness of the SP.
   
   
3. The four training programmes should explore and share ways to strengthen representation and participation of diverse partner institutions in the SP as a means to strengthen buy-in and enhance individual, organisational, and institutional capacity building.
   
   
4. GRÓ central is advised to establish a master’s and doctoral scholarship budget line based on training programmes‘ projections for a five-year period and informed by current postgraduate student needs and estimates to facilitate long-term quality planning across all programmes. 
   
   
5. GRÓ central and the four training programmes should develop a comprehensive funding and promotion strategy to supplement/complement core MFA funding.
   
   
6. GRÓ central and the four training programmes are encouraged to actively seek opportunities to develop as a cross-sectoral community of practice through implementation and monitoring of the 2022-2027 Theory of Change, and to ensure cross-cutting themes such as gender are better addressed.
   
   
7. The MFA should ensure the position of GRÓ director general is for at least a three-year period to ensure long-term management and institutional memory.
   
   
8. The training programmes should continue to take the lead in education and research decision making given that the academic freedom of the training programmes has proven to yield positive results.
   
   
9. GRÓ central and the four training programmes should develop a common scholarship package informed by best practices and create a link on the GRÓ webpage for all information related to the scholarship programme.
   
   
10. GRÓ central in collaboration with the training programmes is encouraged to explore the feasibility of establishing formal agreements with partner universities in Iceland and internationally to increase academic and social wellbeing of scholarship recipients and strengthen the relationship between academia and development cooperation.

Primary conclusions indicate that the scholarship programme, as an extension of the diploma training programme, is a core activity that contributes to capacity development in partner countries as outlined in GRÓ’s Theory of Change and Strategy 2022–2027. Fellows who have been granted scholarships have been particularly proficient as change agents by contributing to important results at the home country level, even beyond the academic sphere. However, findings also raise questions about the need to ensure greater financial security and wellbeing of students while engaged in academic studies, in particular for doctoral students. The findings also reveal opportunities to maximise the educational and development impact of GRÓ through strengthened strategic collaboration between the four training programmes and GRÓ central. 

Report

An external evaluation of the Mangochi Basic Services Programme Phase II (MBSP II) was completed in November 2023, covering the period from July 2017 to June 2023. Iceland is a long-standing bilateral development partner in Malawi, working in the country since 1989. The initial focus was on fisheries research and value creation in Lake Malawi in Mangochi District and later evolved into activities to support improved livelihoods, including health, primary education, adult literacy, and water and sanitation in nearby fishing and rural communities. The single largest activity, prior to MBSP, was the construction of the community hospital in Monkey Bay, handed over to the Malawian authorities in 2011.

The MBSP II is financed by the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs in its bilateral development cooperation partner country, Malawi. Mangochi District Council is implementing the MBSP II at district level, managed via the modality of a programme-based approach (PBA). The evaluators applied a mixed-methods approach to data collection and analysis and used a variety of standard methodological approaches: documentation review, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, household questionnaire survey, and performance assessment using quantitative and qualitative data.

The evaluation finds that the programme is fully in line with Icelandic development cooperation policy aims. It is specifically linked to the develop- mental goal of enhancing social infrastructure via basic services to improve living standards and increase opportunities. This programme is also fully consistent with Iceland's focus on utilizing local systems and development plans in country, through the modality of a PBA implemented at district level. The MBSP II is found to have produced real social benefits for the citizens of Mangochi District in terms of improved access to and the quality of basic service provision.

The programme’s implementation period commenced in July 2017 and was originally foreseen to run for a period of 4-years. In 2021, the partners agreed to an extension of the programme implementation period up to the end of March 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges that is caused for implementation during 2020 and 2021. The partners agreed to a further extension of the programme period until 2025 to finalize completion of key programme investments.

The evaluation sets forth seventeen recommendations that have three distinct aims: (1) to ensure a successful completion of the MBSP II actions, (2) recommendations linked to the operation of the PBA modality at district level and (3) recommendations for the potential future orientation of Icelandic support to Mangochi District.

Some key recommendations include: 

• The District Council (Secretariat and Offices) should ensure continuation of the provision of capacity building supports for local community structures and groups.
• The Embassy of Iceland should ensure stricter reporting compliance by the supported Districts, both in terms of the timeliness and the accuracy of financial and technical reporting.
• The Embassy of Iceland, in partnership with the District Council (Secretariat and Offices), should establish clear processes for the development of sustainability planning from the onset of similar programmes and activities. These should specify concrete measures that need to be undertaken during the lifetime of the programme for the long-term sustainability management of each sub- component.

Report: External evaluation of the Mangochi Basic Services Programme Phase II (MBSP II) 

Summary: External evaluation of the Mangochi Basic Services Programme Phase II (MBSP II) 

The evaluation was geared towards mapping the involvement of universities and the academic community in development cooperation. The objective was to define best practices and ways for the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) to work with and encourage increased participation of universities and the academic community in development cooperation, and thus increase the value of Iceland's contribution to achieving the SDGs.

Findings indicate that many opportunities exist for increased collaboration by the MFA with universities and academia for international development cooperation, and that interest exists for establishing partnerships. 

Primary recommendations pertain to strategic direction and goal setting for this type of collaboration. Increased outreach and communication within academic institutions is called for, to include the opportunities that exist for services provided by the Nordic Africa Institute. It is also recommended that Iceland adjusts its Technical Assistance Programme to accommodate scholars and institutions within universities to contribute to international development cooperation with their expertise. Framework agreements are recommended as the primary mechanisms for collaboration with Icelandic universities, which can offer a platform for various kinds of collaboration. 

Collaboration by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs with universities and academia – formative evaluation (only available in Icelandic).

Iceland adopted its third National Action Plan (NAP) in 2018 for the period 2018-2022. An evaluation, which was published in February 2022, assesses the results of the NAP with the aim of providing basis for the formation of a new NAP, which is to be adopted in 2023.

Abstract from the evaluation: Iceland’s current National Action Plan (NAP) emphasizes the importance of cooperation between different ministries, institutions and civil society organizations that work within the area of topics stipulated under United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on women, peace and security (hereafter UNSCR 1325). The Icelandic NAP is organized into four different main themes, i.e.; (1) education and advocacy, (2) participation, (3) prevention, protection, assistance and rehabilitation, and (4) cooperation and consultation. The NAP consists of 30 different actions to achieve the goals within the four main themes. The responsibility for fulfilling these action points is shared between offices within the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry for Social Affairs, the Ministry of Justice and its sub-organizations, i.e. the Directorate of Labour and the Directorate of Immigration, as well as the Gender Equality Studies and Training Programme under the auspices of UNESCO (GRÓ-GEST).

The NAP touches upon different sectors of society which makes cooperation between various ministries and institutions crucial even though the main responsibility of its implementation lies with the 1325 Task Force at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. It should be emphasized that the NAP is not an action plan for the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs alone, but rather, it is a national strategy that outlines the Icelandic government’s approach and goals when it comes to UNSCR 1325 in cooperation with relevant institutions and civil society organizations. Therefore, it is important that relevant key actors are involved in developing the NAP from the very beginning, since emphasis is placed on wide-reaching cooperation within society to formulate actions that will create progress on resolution 1325. This cooperation must furthermore remain active throughout the action plan’s period to ensure its successful implementation.

The evaluation of the Icelandic NAP of 2018-2022 produced the following results: There are still several action points that need to be fulfilled under the category of (1) Education and advocacy, to ensure that key actors receive education on UNSCR 1325, which is the foundation for ensuring progress on UNSCR 1325. A vital action in that regard is the mapping of key actors in the field, which has not yet been finished. The mapping of key actors needs to continue in order to raise awareness of UNSCR 1325 and ensure its implementation. Online courses would serve as a good tool to ensure that ministry staff and other stakeholders receive the required education on UNSCR 1325 regardless of their location. Iceland is a strong advocate for gender equality internationally, and has been active in working towards progress on UNSCR 1325 during the implementation period of the current NAP. However, if Iceland aims to ensure cooperation and mainstreaming within the public administration on UNSCR 1325, goals must be articulated clearly and the responsibilities of each actor defined in a manner that leaves no ambiguities for implementation. When it comes to increasing the (2) participation of women at all levels of peacebuilding and peace processes, Iceland has contributed with a training programme for women and men from conflicted areas via GRÓ GEST, Gender Equality Studies & Training Programme under the auspices of UNESCO. Iceland has also been active within the Nordic Women Mediators (NWM) network but Iceland must define what it wants to gain from the participation and develop a strategy on how Iceland can become a strong advocate within the network so that more women will be party to peace processes and peacebuilding in their own country. Another objective of the NAP is to second experts to work within international organizations on gender equality but such objectives must be planned in a decision-making framework within the mandate of the Icelandic government. Iceland has worked towards (3) prevention, protection, assistance and rehabilitation both internationally and domestically. Iceland supports UN Women and UNICEF projects related to UNSCR 1325 within conflict zones financially, however it is important to consider how Iceland defines the concept of UNSCR 1325, and thus its objectives, in order to evaluate the success of the projects.

Additionally, Iceland currently supports other organizations where emphasis is also warranted, such as the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). One of the goals of the NAP is to provide information regarding measures of rehabilitation and assistance following sexual and gender-based violence to all women that have sought and/or have been granted asylum in Iceland. The Directorate of Labour has developed community education material for adult immigrants where information on different measures of rehabilitation and assistance is covered among other topics. However, the presentation is carried out in a mixed group, with both men and women participating, and it is therefore difficult to assess whether the information is adequately conveyed to the women present. Women who seek asylum in Iceland only receive this information orally in interviews connected with the asylum process. It is suggested that relevant key actors, including the women themselves, be consulted on how best to deliver this information effectively. If Iceland wishes to ensure rehabilitation to women in need, it is important to engage with key actors within the field, i.e. people working first-hand with this group of women, and the women themselves. The Istanbul Convention has been ratified and the implementation is progressing. However, interviews for this evaluation revealed that there are still cases where women do not enjoy their rights under the Convention. Work on organizing actions against human trafficking in Iceland has also progressed considerably. However, it is important to increase consultation between relevant actors in this field during the early stages of writing the next NAP to define the role and responsibility of key actors, and monitor progress. The 1325 Task Force has, however, not followed up on the progress on these issues. Information regarding this progress has subsequently not been published in the NAP progress reports as was originally intended. When it comes to domestic (4) cooperation and consultation, the objective was to activate a Consultation group for Civil-Government coordination. The group has not been activated. To ensure the participation of civil society organizations domestically, it is important to establish such a coordination group, define its mandate, and what actors should be included. Finally, according to the NAP, the 1325 Task Force should have called after information on the progress of all the action points from relevant key actors and written a progress report for the NAP, but such reports were never written. Mid-term evaluation of the NAP in 2020 was not conducted as originally intended.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has supported SOS Children's Villages, Iceland development efforts in Togo. The mid-term evaluation of "Strengthening of the fight against sexual exploitation of children, especially girls, in the Ogou District, Togo" is an independent external evaluation conducted to assess the overall level of implementation of the project and generate lessons after one and a half years of implementation. SOS Children's Villages Togo, Atakpamé Program, is implementing this project since from January 2020 to December 2022 in nine communities. The project is initiated to prevent sexual exploitation, care, and support to children, mainly girls, who have been sexually exploited. The evaluation covers activities carried out from January 2020 to June 2021 and the evaluation report was published in March 2022.

Conclusions indicate that the project will be able to achieve its objectives in the long term, provided that a rescheduling is carried out to make up for the activities that were not carried out or postponed because of the COVID-19 context. Awareness-raising activities have certainly increased the level of knowledge of families and raised awareness among the population on the consequences of the phenomenon of sexual exploitation and the need to report cases and denounce the perpetrators.

The project had developed four types of support (psychological/psychosocial, medical, legal, as well as scholar and vocational ones) for victims of sexual exploitation; those supports have helped reduce the consequences for these victims, their families, and the community. A total of 77 girls, victims of sexual exploitation, have benefited from such support.

Of the 176,897 euros planned and disbursed for the implementation of activities covering the evaluation period, 51% has been executed. This low level of budget execution is due to the delay in the start-up of activities; but above all to the COVID-19 context, which led to the postponement, even the non-implementation of several planned activities.

The mid-term implementation of the project have generated several lessons and good practices, drown from the relevance and effectiveness of the approaches, which have enabled the beneficiaries’ communities’ adherence. These include the Savings Groups (SG) approach, which seems to respond effectively to the problems of economic vulnerability of parents; the Super Nagan approach, which has given confidence to children and victims of sexual exploitation. Also, the various services developed during the project have helped victims to reduce the consequences of sexual exploitation by allowing them to continue their studies or to move towards vocational training. Cases of exploitation are increasingly reported among the population, rising from 49 cases in 2020 to 73 in the first half of 2021 and children are more likely to report abuse to their parents. Different attitudes and behaviours seem to be influenced by socio-cultural constraints. 

The project has elements that can guarantee the sustainability of its achievements, but they remain fragile and must be further consolidated before the end of the project's implementation. Six strategic recommendations are set forth, and 11 operational recommendations, which can be used for successful continuation of the implementation of the project.

Report in English
Report in French
Summary in French

This is an end of project evaluation for the Buikwe District Fishing Community Development Programme (BDFCDP) but Iceland applies a district-based programme approach in its bilateral cooperation with Uganda. Programme components are two: collaboration within the field of water and sanitation, and in the field of education. The scope of the water and sanitation component totalled 2.407.542 USD and 6.541.716 USD for the educational project component. The programme was implemented by Buikwe District Local Government (BDLG) with support from the Government of Iceland (GoI) 2018-2022. The development objective of the BDFCDP was to facilitate improvement in livelihoods and living conditions of people in 20 fishing communities in the four sub counties of Najja, Ngogwe, Nyenga and Ssi Bukunja in Buikwe district.

The evaluation relied on mixed methods, to include household survey, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, focus group discussions and document and literature review. Further, water quality testing was performed, with total of 182 samples drawn from 13 water sources, nine from reservoir tanks, 46 from water tap stands and 114 from household drinking water containers.

Approximately 26.000 persons benefited from the water and sanitation project with access to an improved water source. Within the educational project, 87 school rooms and 19 offices were constructed in 19 schools. 92 school rooms were renovated, 21 apartments for school staff constructed, as well as four laboratories which were also equipped. Sanitation facilities were built in nine schools and 21 school kitchens constructed. Students were provided with close to 24.000 schoolbooks in core subjects.

The evaluation found the BDFCDP programme to be very relevant and aligned to the development priorities of Uganda expressed in Vision 2040, the respective NDP II, and the SDGs particularly goals 4 and 6.

The evaluators conclude that revisions in project design and approach have been made since the first phase of the BDFCDP, that local ownership is very strong and that the programme has enjoyed firm support by authorities. However, procurement processes are time consuming, which has been an obstacle for timely implementation.

Findings also indicate that the ratio of households within the programme area that have access to healthy water within 1 km., has increased to 83% from 32% from 2015. Quality of water from source is good, but there are instances of contamination in water for consumption within homes, which calls for a massive sensitization about the safe water chain. Sustainability of public toilet facilities is also a challenge and proper operation and management needs to be ensured for the future.

Schools were closed for almost two years during the project time due to COVID-19. This had an impact on some education project components, such as to build capacity for quality teaching and school leadership and district education sector management capacity.

A number of other findings and recommendations are set forth in the evaluation, which will also serve as lessons learned for the third phase of the BDFCDP which commenced in 2022.

A financial audit of GRÓ was launched early April 2022. The purpose is to assess the processes and procedures concerning financial management and use of development funds by GRÓ, host institutions, the four training programmes and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, as well as follow up recommendations from previous audits.

The Icelandic International Development Agency (ICEIDA) merged with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) at the beginning of 2016, when the MFA’s Development Cooperation Office took over Iceland’s bilateral development cooperation. The OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) has reiterated the importance of Iceland evaluating the success of the merger. The evaluation began in the middle of the year 2021, and its design is partially based on lessons from other donor countries. The evaluation focus is divided into three main fields:

1. Efficiency and effectiveness of development cooperation
2. Organization and strategy
3. Human resources and management

The first two factors are based on the goals/criteria set by the merger, the Government's recommendations on the mergers of institutions, and numerical criteria for the effectiveness of development cooperation. This part of the evaluation is carried out within the MFA and is largely based on the analysis of statistical data and other factual data. Among other things, it is based on international standards of integrity and the effectiveness of development cooperation.

The third factor deals with human resources and management, but staff’s attitude towards different aspects of the merger is also be examined. An independent, external evaluators carry out this part of the evaluation. Planned completion is in first quarter 2022.

The evaluation of Iceland‘s mechanisms for private sector collaboration was commissioned by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Iceland (MFA) and conducted by NIRAS, an international consultancy firm. The evaluation assesses how well the current structures and facilities, aimed at supporting the private sector, work and feeds into the further development of Icelandic private sector collaboration by providing recommendations for improvement. Private sector cooperation is channeled through three facilities: (1) The Sustainable Development Goals Partnership Fund which aims to co-finance projects developed and implemented by Icelandic private sector companies that support Iceland’s work towards fulfilling the SDGs; (2) the Development Seeds (Þróunarfræ) facility, which is a grant framework managed by the Icelandic Centre for Research (Rannís) that provides grant funding for project preparatory activities; and (3) Technical Assistance Program (TAP) which offers advisory services through Icelandic consultants to international organisations.

With total commitments of ISK 324 million over four years, the Sustainable Development Goals Partnership Fund has funded 24 development projects aiming to support the Sustainable Development Goals. It has involved 23 Icelandic private sector companies and projects in 16 countries. These projects represent a wide range of sectors with fisheries being the largest single sector with almost a third of the projects. The average grant size has been a little over 13.5 million ISK. Development Seeds (Þróunarfræ) has financed two projects since its inception in 2021. The Technical Assistance Program has financed at least 56 assignments in the period 2020-2021, where Icelandic experts have done work in at least nine different countries plus several “global” projects.

In the evaluation, a mixed methods approach was applied, based on evidence collected through document review, quantitative data analysis, interviews, a workshop with project companies, and two electronic surveys.

35 recommendations are set forth in the evaluation for improvement regarding inter alia governance, management, administration, and the operations of the financing facilities, Business Iceland’s role, handling the de minimis rule, Nordic cooperation, and IFI collaboration. Going forward, MFA can enhance its strategic approach, its tools, and implementation approach to better engage, leverage, and support the Icelandic private sector to implement development projects supporting the SDGs in ODA countries. This remains well in line with Iceland’s Policy for International Development Cooperation for 2019- 2023, which specifically states that “it is important to increase the leverage of public development cooperation with participation from private sector actors.“

• Report (English)
• Summary (English)

Evaluation of the Icelandic CSO Strategy was published in February 2021. The evaluation’s scope encompassed support granted to Icelandic CSOs since 2015, with special focus dedicated to the framework agreement for humanitarian interventions between the MFA and the Icelandic Red Cross (IRC). Nearly 100 development, humanitarian, and communications projects were funded 2015-2020, in addition to 19 projects funded under a framework agreement with the IRC. These efforts involved 18 Icelandic CSOs with projects in 32 countries that had a strong poverty focus and targeted marginalized and vulnerable groups to a great degree. Results indicate that the MFA made important efforts to establish a comprehensive administrative system for CSO support during the strategy period. Recommendations call for an updated strategy; a more extensive use of framework agreements that not only extend to humanitarian assistance, but also to development cooperation; increased integration of human-rights based approaches; streamlining work procedures, and enhanced coherence.

An internal review of Iceland‘s participation in the United Nations Junior Professional Officer Program 2005-2015 (Icelandic) was published in May 2021. A summary of results is available in English, and Icelandic. The review was intended to generate lessons learned for a renewed participation on Iceland’s behalf. The review sought to identify the results generated, value added for Icelandic participants and the respective UN agencies.

Ten young professionals participated in the program and were hired by three UN organizations. Two former JPOs still work within the UN system, two are employed by the MFA and three work within academia, with an emphasis on international issues. Finally, three former JPOs are engaged with international work on behalf of CSOs in international development.

Findings indicate that Iceland’s participation in the JPO program has returned various kinds of results, and a point of interest is that all candidates have pursued professional careers within the fields of international affairs and development cooperation. The main conclusions indicate that it is feasible for Iceland to participate, as long as funds are available, and the participation does not exceed reasonable limits. It is suggested that participation be based on a holistic view of the human resource base within international affairs and development cooperation in Iceland, and that implementation be based on best practices. 11 recommendations are set forth where emphasis is placed on maximizing benefits derived from participation and that the MFA formulate a professional framework for program administration. This entails for the MFA to set clear objectives and seek to learn from the participation of like-minded countries, in addition to regularly evaluating the results from participating in the JPO program.

Over a five-year period, from 2016 to 2020, the development assistance costs associated with quota refugees and asylum seekers, amounted to over ISK 7 billion. The implementation of projects and provision of services is the responsibility of various ministries and agencies. In recent years, extensive work has been carried out to improve the methodologies and processes concerning the reporting of these costs as a part of Iceland’s ODA.

In early 2021, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation proposed that an independent assessment of development cooperation costs and related services concerning quota refugees and asylum seekers be carried out in cooperation with the ministries and agencies responsible for implementation. An evaluation reference group with representatives from the different ministries and institutions involved was appointed.

The evaluation report was published in December 2021. Findings indicate that considerable reforms have taken place, to include Iceland’s methodology which has been approved by OECD DAC, the receipt of asylum seekers is to a larger extent coordinated, and efforts are underway for refugees and asylum seekers to be assigned a single social security number. The latter will facilitate overview, increase accuracy and enables coordinated data processing from different public systems.

The report states that there is still scope for improvement. Three different ways to move forward are suggested. The most feasible one, in the short run, entails further classification of costs within accounting systems, where the Directorate of Immigration and the respective municipalities account for DAC eligible and non-DAC eligible costs when they occur and are entered into accounting systems. By changing work processes, the ratio of approximated cost would decline and real cost, to a greater extent, be accounted for. Additionally, planning processes would greatly improve. The lack of timely information of costs occurred has a negative impact of Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ overview and planning against budgetary goals and Iceland’s goals for meeting annual ODA targets.  

• Evaluation of in-donor costs for asylum seekers and refugees in Iceland (in Icelandic)
• Evaluation of in-donor costs for asylum seekers and refugees in Iceland (in English)

Iceland has contributed to the fight against genital mutilation (FGM) through its international development cooperation.

Since 2011, Iceland has supported a Joint UNFPA-UNICEF Program on the Abandonment of FGM to eliminate FGM by 2030. The geographical scale of implementation is across 17 countries. Iceland participated in an evaluation reference group for a final evaluation of Phase III, along with representatives of Norway and Austria. 

Results indicate that the Joint Programme continues to be a strategic and relevant response by UNFPA and UNICEF to the global issue of female genital mutilation (FGM). Phase III design appropriately recognized the importance of positioning FGM on the political agenda of regional entities, and supporting accountability systems. The Joint Programme has also advanced its work to support national legal and policy environments, responsive to national context. The design of Phase III recognizes the importance of working on complex issues, which reflect modification of FGM practice, in particular medicalization and cross-border FGM. The Joint Programme has adapted effectively to COVID-19 within programming, and contributed to the global understanding of how COVID-19 has impacted FGM. Currently FGM receives insufficient consideration in humanitarian systems and programming, with limited access to services for FGM survivors in humanitarian settings. Given that efforts required to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 5.3 of abandoning FGM fall far beyond programme implementation, there have been commendable efforts to reach non-Joint Programme countries.

Evaluation report
Evaluation Brief
Conclusions and recommendations