Joint Evaluation of Citizens’ Voice and Accountability: Synthesis Report

This synthesis report is organised around eight chapters:
• Chapter 1 (Introduction) provides an overview of the evaluation’s rationale, purpose
and objectives.
• Chapter 2 describes the evaluation’s scope and methodology, and includes a
thorough discussion of the sample on which this evaluation is based.
• Chapter 3 covers donor perspectives on CV&A and the assumptions about changes
these kinds of interventions are expected to bring about.
• Chapter 4 provides an overview of what donors are doing in practice, highlighting
what has worked well and less well in different interventions and settings.
• Chapter 5 assesses the results and impact of CV&A interventions along three different dimensions: i) in terms of broader developmental outcomes such as poverty reduction and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); ii) in terms of changes at more intermediate levels, including changes in practice, behaviour, policy and power relations; and iii) in terms of the DAC evaluation criteria most relevant to this evaluation, namely relevance, effectiveness and sustainability; the
criterion on impact is addressed in points i) and ii) above.
• Chapter 6 seeks to uncover the reasons why the (positive) impact of CV&A
interventions has so far remained limited.
• Chapter 7 looks at how current CV&A interventions fit in with the aid effectiveness
agenda.
• Chapter 8 draws out the main conclusions from the study, and on that basis develops
a series of core principles and recommendations for improved donor practice. It also outlines issues/areas that merit further investigation.