End of Project Evaluation - United Nations Peacebuilding Priority Plan 2015 – 2017

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Papua New Guinea (PNG) commissioned a final evaluation of the United Nations Peacebuilding Priority Plan (PPP) 2015 – 2017, funded by the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO). UNDP and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) implemented the PPP in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (ARoB) of Papua New Guinea from August 2015 with an extension through April 2018.

The final evaluation assesses overall progress of the four projects with their own outcomes in the PPP to evaluate the design of the PPP, achievements in each outcome, the effectiveness of PPP processes, and sustainability from these 33 months of implementation. The Final Evaluation explains why the evaluation was conducted, the background for the PPP, and the methods used in the evaluation. Findings from the evaluation’s methods are followed by summaries of accumulated findings as conclusions. Conclusions are analysed to make recommendations and draw lessons learned from the PPP. Annexes include an Evaluation Matrix, a bibliography, a list of interviewees, and the data collection instrument used.

Bougainville suffered nearly a decade of violent conflict in the 1990s that killed an estimated 20,000 people. While organised violence largely ended with the signing of the Bougainville Peace Agreement (BPA) in 2001, tensions remained between and within communities and in relations between the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG), which was established as part of the BPA, and the Government of PNG. The UN declared PNG eligible for support from the PBF in 2013. The UN and ABG conducted a comprehensive Peace and Development Analysis (PDA) and developed with the GoPNG a three-year PPP in 2014. In addition to an outcome on implementation, the PPP had three outcomes: Relationship and trust between GoPNG and ABG are strengthened to contribute to effective implementation of autonomy arrangements and of the Bougainville Peace Agreement; People of Bougainville are empowered to make informed choices at the Bougainville referendum and to have increased confidence in the BPA process through access to more objective and accurate information and to fora for dialogue and debate and with their political leaders; and Community social cohesion and security in Bougainville are strengthened through opportunities to deal with conflict-related trauma effectively, and resolution of local disputes peacefully as well as through better access to information to access appropriate post-conflict support services.