LEAD for Training on utilization focused evaluation and promoting evidence use
AFDB1JP00001621
Open Job
Status
Not Applied
Next Step
Apply
Posted On
2026-10-15
Period
2026-11-06 to 2026-12-30
Job Type
Temporary Part Time
Location
Abidjan 01CIV
Category
Business Professional
Description
LEAD FOR Training on utilization focused evaluation and promoting evidence use
The Independent Development Evaluation (IDEV) function of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB or “the Bank Group”) plays a central role in promoting evidence-based learning, accountability, and decision-making within the Bank and across its Regional Member Countries (RMCs). While the production of high-quality evaluations remains central to IDEV’s mandate, in IDEV’s 2025-2027 work program, stronger attention is given to ensuring that evaluative evidence is understood, accessed, and meaningfully used.
The purpose of this assignment is to design and deliver specialized training that builds IDEV staff’s capacity to design and implement evaluations that directly inform decisions and mobilize broader constituencies. The course will emphasize utilization‑focused methods for promoting direct use by decision‑makers, and strategies for ethical, strategic dissemination and stakeholder engagement to scale uptake.
Application Close Date
2026-10-22
Engagement Type
Individual Consultant
Job Family
12.Capacity Development, Governance, Natural Resource and Knowledge Management
A. Background Objectives
The African Development Bank (AfDB or “the Bank Group”) is committed to reducing poverty and improving living standards across its Regional Member Countries (RMCs) by mobilizing financial resources and delivering technical assistance to support economic and social development. Within the Bank, the Independent Development Evaluation (IDEV) function plays a central role in reinforcing the effectiveness of these interventions. IDEV conducts independent evaluations of the Bank’s strategies, policies, projects, and corporate processes, while also promoting learning, accountability, and an evaluation culture both within the institution and across RMCs. By generating credible evidence and actionable insights, IDEV supports the Bank in making informed decisions and improving development outcomes. To strengthen the quality, clarity and influence of its evaluation work, IDEV’s 2025-2027 work program places a strong emphasis on staff and consultant capacity development. It also sets “strengthening the utilization of evaluations through knowledge, outreach, evaluation capacity development and the quality of interactions with stakeholders” as a key goal for the work program period. The evaluation process does not end with evidence production. Goldman and Mine (2021) highlighted that ensuring evidence influences decisions requires deliberate "evidence use interventions." Such interventions implemented before, during, or after evidence generation foster ownership, promote consensus around findings, enhance credibility, and broaden access. They operate by activating change mechanisms within individuals and organizations that enable the use. The immediate outcomes are strengthening stakeholder capacity to interpret and apply evidence, concrete opportunities to use it in context, and increased motivation to do so. When these outcomes are achieved, they can produce sustained changes in behaviour, policy, and practice at individual, organisational, and system levels. IDEV’s evaluation process, from the initiation of an evaluation through to the monitoring of the follow-up of its recommendations, includes several entry points that can be strengthened to increase the likelihood of use-by-design. In this regard, IDEV plans to deliver a structured training on "Utilization Focused Evaluation and Promoting Evidence Use" to strengthen staff capacity for conducting ready to use evaluations, designing institutional approaches for evidence uptake and stakeholder engagement, and tracking the use and impact of evaluation recommendations. The specific objectives of this training are to: • Strengthen capacity to design and undertake utilization focused evaluations: Enable IDEV staff to plan and implement evaluations with clear decision use questions, mapped users, stakeholder engagement, and time bound use pathways so findings are produced when and how decision makers need them. • Improve skills in synthesizing and packaging evidence for diverse audiences: equip IDEV staff to convert technical findings into concise, compelling, and actionable products (policy memos, decision briefs, infographics, dashboards) tailored to Bank management, RMCs, and other stakeholders. • Build practical competency in dissemination, outreach, and promoting evidence use: teach methods to identify champions, craft persuasive narratives, map coalitions, and deploy ethical outreach strategies that broaden uptake beyond immediate report consumers. • Advance stakeholder engagement across the evaluation cycle: provide tools and practice for stakeholder analysis, co creation, engagement planning, and facilitation to increase relevance, ownership, and sustained use of evaluation findings. • Develop monitoring and learning metrics for evidence use and impact: enable participants to set indicators, collect evidence, and document instances of uptake and influence, and to adapt communication and engagement strategies based on monitoring results.
B. Scope of work
The firm/consultant will design and facilitate structured, practical training on Utilization Focused Evaluation and Promoting Evidence Use, tailored to IDEV’s operational context. The training should strengthen the capacity of IDEV staff to generate useful evaluative evidence and to promote the uptake of evaluative evidence in decision-making, enhance stakeholder engagement throughout the evaluation cycle, improve the communication of findings for different users, and reinforce systems for capturing evidence use and impact. The training should build on previous capacity-building efforts, including stakeholder engagement, communication and reporting, presentation and report-writing training, while moving further toward an institutional approach to evidence uptake, learning, and accountability. Its methodology should emphasize contextualized and practice-oriented learning, adapting concepts and tools to the real institutional and operational realities faced by IDEV teams and their interaction with Bank management, operational complexes, and Regional Member Countries. Key thematic areas include: • Evaluation design and implementation for use: Practical guidance on framing decision oriented questions, mapping primary users, continuous stakeholder engagement, aligning timelines with decision windows, and embedding utilization pathways in evaluation TORs and plans. • Evidence synthesis and product development: Hands on methods to synthesize findings into concise, audience tailored outputs (policy memos, decision briefs, infographics, dashboards) that emphasize actionable recommendations and credibility. • Stakeholder engagement and co creation: Tools and exercises for stakeholder analysis, engagement planning, facilitation techniques, and co creation approaches to boost ownership, legitimacy, and uptake throughout the evaluation cycle. • Dissemination, outreach and promoting evidence use: Strategies for building coalitions and champions, narrative framing, media and policy engagement, and ethical outreach plans to mobilize broader constituencies beyond immediate report consumers. • Recommendation follow up, monitoring and learning: Design of systems and indicators for tracking management responses, implementation of recommendations, and documenting evidence use and impact to reinforce accountability and adaptive learning. The training must employ advanced tools, utilizing case studies from IDEV’s evaluations, context and simulation exercises where staff practice. The training will emphasize practical reflection on IDEV’s existing practices and explore opportunities to strengthen institutional coherence in promoting evidence use.
C. Deliverables Expected
The training will be delivered through an interactive, reflective, and institutional approach. The key deliverables are outlined below. 1. Inception & need assessment: A baseline assessment identifying specific barriers (institutional, technical) to evidence promotion. 2. Tailored Curriculum: A modular course plan focusing on Utilization Focused evaluation, stakeholder engagement, evidence use interventions design 3. Training Delivery: Facilitation of the hybrid/in-person workshops and hands-on coaching for active evaluation projects, such as group exercises on designing evaluation with clear decision use questions, strategic engagement with stakeholders to foster evidence use and uptake, designing “evaluative evidence use interventions”. 4. Coaching and monitoring: Support the team on real cases in designing “evaluative evidence use interventions” 5. Reporting and Post-Training: An assessment of learning provided to IDEV staff and a strategic roadmap for IDEV to sustain a high-influence evaluative evidence use culture. The training should create space for reflection on barriers to evidence promotion and identify realistic pathways for strengthening impact.
D. Duration and Timetable for the Assignment
The assignment comprises twelve (12) working days to be carried out over a four-month period (Nov. 2026-March 2027). The days will be assigned as follows: One (01) day preparatory work, including assessment of IDEV staff skills and needs; three (03) days Training design, 5 and a half (5.5) days training delivery, one and a half days (1.5) Coaching and monitoring, and one (01) day post-training assessment and reporting.
The Training materials will include case studies and evaluations relevant to IDEV’s work to stimulate the promotion of evidence to bank management or stakeholders.
The timetable of the assignment is structured as follows: n° Activities Period of execution 1 Meeting with Quality assurance team and IDEV management Week Nov 2-6 2 Preparatory work, including assessment of IDEV staff skills and need Week Nov 9-13 3 Curriculum design Week Nov 16-20 2 Session 1: Introduction to utilization focused Evaluation (UFE) (Online) Week Jan 18-22 3 Session 2: Introduction to promoting evidence use (Online) Week Jan 18-22 4 Session3: Introduction to the analytical framework for developing “Evidence use interventions” (Online) Week Jan 25-29 5 Session 4: Recommendation follow up, monitoring and learning (Online) Week Jan 25-29 6 Practical clinic sessions (In person) Week Feb 8-12 7 Coaching sessions (Online) Week March 1-5
E. Bank Contribution and Institutional Arrangement
IDEV will support the effective implementation of the assignment by facilitating access to relevant information, documentation, and staff as needed. The Bank will provide logistical and coordination support on a case-by-case basis, in response to specific requests from the consultant/firm, to ensure smooth delivery of all training activities. This may include: • Providing access to IDEV staff and managers for interviews, consultations, or needs assessments; • Sharing relevant evaluation reports, templates, guidelines, and standards; • Facilitating communication with participants and ensuring their availability for scheduled sessions; • Supporting logistical arrangements for training sessions, including virtual platforms or physical meeting spaces, as applicable; • Reviewing and providing timely feedback on training plans, materials, and reports.
The Principal Evaluation Capacity Development Officer will be the focal point for overseeing the assignment, coordinating with the consultant/firm throughout the engagement, and ensuring alignment with IDEV’s expectations and internal processes. The consultant/firm will remain responsible for the technical quality and timely delivery of all outputs.
F. Duty Station
Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire and Online (hybrid training)
G. Essential Specialized Skills/Knowledge/Competencies
The consultant/consultancy firm is expected to demonstrate strong expertise in planning, designing, implementing, and disseminating independent evaluations, evaluation evidence use, institutional learning, and recommendation monitoring within multilateral development contexts. The following qualifications and competencies are required for the lead experts involved in delivering the assignment: Academic and Professional Qualifications • A master’s degree in public policy, economics, development studies, governance, organizational learning, international development or a related field. • Full professional proficiency in English (spoken and written); knowledge of French is an asset. Experience and Technical Expertise • 7-10 years of professional experience in evaluation, institutional learning, and performance management. • 7+ years of experience in IFI/IO independent evaluation functions (e.g., AfDB, World Bank, UN). • Demonstrated expertise in promoting evidence use and strengthening recommendation uptake within international or multilateral organizations. • Experience supporting Management Response systems and monitoring mechanisms. • Strong understanding of institutional governance, strategy alignment and performance monitoring frameworks. • Sound experience in crafting briefs and convening decision makers. Training and Facilitation Skills • Proven ability to design and deliver high-level training programs for professionals in multilateral development institutions. • Strong facilitation skills, including the ability to guide strategic discussions among senior staff. • Ability to translate conceptual frameworks into applied institutional practice. Analytical and Communication Skills • Excellent analytical and conceptual reasoning skills. • Strong written and oral communication skills. • Ability to engage diverse audiences in multicultural institutional settings
H. Supervisor
IDEV3 Division Manager
Consultancy Input Days
12.00
Qualifications
Qualification
Assessment
Regular Consultant
Less than 32 years old at the time of signing the contract and during contract execution
