A Mechanism-Centred Approach to Evaluating Complex Aid Interventions: The Case of Accompanying Measures to Budget Support

Background: Current methodological debates related to theory-based evaluations (TBE) centre around questions how to improve the explanatory strength of these approaches and how to integrate mechanisms as analytic concept. Particularly in complex aid interventions, when multiple elements are expected to interact and thus create an added value, exploring mechanisms as an analytical tool can be promising. Purpose: This paper seeks to contribute to the discussion on the use of TBE for evaluating complex aid interventions by sharing experiences from a recent evaluation of accompanying measures to general budget support. Setting: Nine countries of sub-Saharan Africa which have received German budget support, namely Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia. Intervention: Accompanying measures (mainly in the form of technical assistance and capacity development) are one element of the budget support package, which further encompasses financial contributions, policy dialogue, and conditionalities. Research Design: We focus on interrelations between different elements of budget support and apply a mechanism-centred approach to programme theory building, Data Collection and Analysis: After defining accompanying measures and integrating them into the intervention logic of budget support used in recent multi-donor evaluations, key mechanisms were identified on an explorative mission to Mozambique, validated in an online survey, and further discussed in expert interviews and during field research in Tanzania. Findings: For the specific example relating to two elements of budget support (policy dialogue and accompanying measures), some of the hypothesized mechanisms were found to create an added value and thus increase the effectiveness of budget support as a package. The applied approach helped generate a more comprehensive implementation theory and provided insights into potential benefits and challenges of combining different elements in one programme. Beyond its use for future evaluations in the field of budget support, we argue that TBE of complex interventions can benefit from adopting such a mechanism-centred approach to create a better understanding of how different elements of the programme interact. Moreover, the focus on mechanisms when analysing programme implementation enables evaluators to improve their empirical inquiry on the identified mechanisms and to draw valid conclusions on the programme’s contribution to the observed outcomes. Keywords: Theory-based evaluation; theory of change; development evaluation; budget support; technical assistance; capacity development

Hello Diversity! Digital Ideation Hackathon: Fostering Gender Equality in Digital Innovation

This panel report outlines key insights from the Hello Diversity! Hackathon on gender equality in the workplace, held digitally in November 2020. The one-day event with more than 150 participants featured panel discussions and ideation sessions to enable the participants to develop innovative tools, strategies, and processes to minimize gender inequality in workforces involved in digital innovation. Overall, the hackathon aimed to build bridges between research and practice to derive answers on how existing barriers towards more gender equality in digital innovation processes and outcomes can be addressed. The theoretically informed challenges that were tackled during the event concerned topics such as stereotypes and discrimination, incentivizing workforce equality, and necessary support infrastructures in public and private spheres. The developed solutions indicate that much remains to be done to address the lack of processes, organizational structures, and holistic knowledge regarding the importance and benefits of diversity and inclusion in digital innovation. The hackathon culminated in pitches made on the envisioned solutions to kick-start their implementation and encourage research support and progress

Accompanying measures to general budget support in Sub-Saharan Africa

As a financial contribution harmonised among donors, general budget support facilitates the implementation of national poverty reduction strategies and promotes governance in partner countries. Apart from this financial contribution to the national budget, the standard budget support package also involves intensive policy dialogue between donors and the partner government, as well as accompanying measures to strengthen country systems. In the portfolio of German development cooperation, accompanying measures to budget support have gained in importance. This evaluation was designed to examine if, how and under which circumstances accompanying measures to budget support can contribute to the objectives of budget support. Questions on the relevance, effectiveness and success factors of these measures were answered based on a literature study, a portfolio analysis, an online survey and semi-structured interviews. Furthermore, the interrelations between accompanying measures and other elements of the package of budget support were analysed

What we know about the effectiveness of budget support: Evaluation Synthesis

For a number of years, budget support has been a preferred aid modality for implementing the principles of effective aid formulated in the 2005 Paris Declaration. Various evaluations find that aid provided through this modality contributes to increased budget allocation towards poverty reduction and improved development outcomes in a number of countries. Nonetheless, budget support has increasingly come under criticism in recent years, and many bilateral donors have either partly or fully stopped using this modality. Against this background, DEval conducted a comprehensive and systematic review of existing evidence on the effectiveness of budget support, based on a considerably larger number and greater variety of sources than previous synthetic work. To close important remaining knowledge gaps this evaluation synthesis draws together different perspectives on the impact of budget support from a total of 95 evaluations and studies. The findings substantiate existing knowledge on the effectiveness of budget support and at the same time generate new insights for decision makers in German and international development cooperation

Rethinking Economic Energy Policy Research – Developing Qualitative Scenarios to Identify Feasible Energy Policies

To accelerate deep decarbonisation in the energy sector, the discipline of economics should focus on identifying feasible instead of optimal policies. To do so, economic analysis should include four features: complexity (a), non-economic aspects (b),uncertainty (c) and stakeholders (d). The aim of this paper is to show that qualitative scenario analysis represents a promising alternative to conventional optimisation approaches and meets these requirements. This paper develops qualitative scenarios for the case study of gas infrastructure modifications with hydrogen and carbon capture and storage technologies in Germany. In the results, the six socio-economic qualitative scenarios are described in more detail. A comparison between the case study and a conventional approach reveals three limitations of the latter and highlights the value of qualitative scenario development. The authors distil the advantages of qualitative scenario analysis and discuss challenges and chances, that go beyond the case study. In conclusion, developing socio-economic scenarios has a large potential to improve economic policy assessment. It also allows to catch up with the rethinking of energy research taking place in other disciplines

CSR between Rhetoric and Reality

Bisher lag der Fokus von Forschungen zu Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) vor allem auf der Ausgestaltung von CSR in Unternehmen und den Auswirkungen von CSR auf das Unternehmen selbst. Untersuchungen zu den Auswirkungen auf Gesellschaft und Umwelt fehlen fast völlig. Das RARE Projekt will diese Lücke schließen

Begleitende Maßnahmen der allgemeinen Budgethilfe in Subsahara-Afrika

Allgemeine Budgethilfe unterstützt mit einem unter Gebern harmonisierten finanziellen Beitrag die Umsetzung nationaler Armutsbekämpfungsstrategien und fördert die Regierungsführung in Partnerländern. Neben dem finanziellen Beitrag zum Staatshaushalt besteht das Budgethilfe-Paket aus einem intensiven Politikdialog zwischen Gebern und der Partnerregierung, sowie aus Begleitenden Maßnahmen zur Stärkung der Partnersysteme. Im Portfolio der deutschen EZ haben Begleitende Maßnahmen der Budgethilfe an Bedeutung gewonnen. Mit der Evaluierung wurde untersucht, ob, wie und unter welchen Umständen Begleitende Maßnahmen der Budgethilfe zu den Zielen der Budgethilfe beitragen können. Auf Basis von Literaturstudium, einer Portfolioanalyse, einer Online-Befragung und semi-strukturierten Interviews wurden Fragen nach Relevanz, Wirkungsweise und Erfolgsfaktoren dieser Maßnahmen beantwortet. Außerdem wurden die Wechselwirkungen zwischen Begleitenden Maßnahmen und anderen Elementen des Budgethilfe-Pakets untersucht

Die Rolle von interprofessioneller Zusammenarbeit (IPZ) im Schnittstellenmanagement bei Personen in komplexen Situationen

In diesem Projekt wurde das Schnittstellenmanagement bei der Versorgung von Menschen mit einer Suizidalität, Schwangeren mit geburtsbedingten Komplikationen und Menschen in Palliative Care Situationen analysiert, d.h. es wurden komplexe Situationen der Patientenversorgung anhand konkreter Fallbeispiele untersucht. Dem Schnittstellenmanagement kommt im klinischen Alltag eine grosse Bedeutung zu, gleichzeitig ist es eine grosse Herausforderung. Dies gilt beispielsweise beim Übergang von einem klinischen Setting in ein anderes. Hier wurde insbesondere die Rolle der interprofessionellen Zusammenarbeit (IPZ) betrachtet

Dsg1 and Dsg3 Composition of Desmosomes Across Human Epidermis and Alterations in Pemphigus Vulgaris Patient Skin

Desmosomes are important epidermal adhesion units and signalling hubs, which play an important role in pemphigus pathogenesis. Different expression patterns of the pemphigus autoantigens desmoglein (Dsg)1 and Dsg3 across different epidermal layers have been demonstrated. However, little is known about changes in desmosome composition in different epidermal layers or in patient skin. The aim of this study was thus to characterize desmosome composition in healthy and pemphigus skin using super-resolution microscopy. An increasing Dsg1/Dsg3 ratio from lower basal (BL) to uppermost granular layer (GL) was observed. Within BL desmosomes, Dsg1 and Dsg3 were more homogeneously distributed whereas superficial desmosomes mostly comprised one of the two molecules or domains containing either one but not both. Extradesmosomal, desmoplakin (Dp)-independent, co-localization of Dsg3 with plakoglobin (Pg) was found mostly in BL and extradesmosomal Dsg1 co-localization with Pg in all layers. In contrast, in the spinous layer (SL) most Dsg1 and Dsg3 staining was confined to desmosomes, as revealed by the co-localization with Dp. In pemphigus patient skin, Dsg1 and Dsg3 immunostaining was altered especially along blister edges. The number of desmosomes in patient skin was reduced significantly in basal and spinous layer keratinocytes with only few split desmosomes found. In addition, Dsg1-Pg co-localization at the apical BL and Dsg3-Pg co-localization in SL were significantly reduced in patients, suggesting that that extradesmosomal Dsg molecules were affected. These results support the hypothesis that pemphigus is a desmosome assembly disease and may help to explain histopathologic differences between pemphigus phenotypes