European Commission - DG AGRI

Guidelines for evaluation of rural development programmes : a European survey

Study dealing with performing and using external evaluations carried out within the framework of the CAP in 2000.

Preparation of a guide of good practices for management and monitoring of external evaluations of Common Market Organisations, in the CAP. This guide is the result of several years of methodological assistance to the evaluation unit of the Directorate General of Agriculture.

This study is the fourth iteration of a larger evaluation of the European Commission promotion measures in third countries and is specifically focused on India, China and South-East Asia.

The evaluation study contributes to debates about EU policies related to information and promotion actions in the various sectors concerned by promotion (wine, dairy products, fruits and vegetables etc). It also examines the selection criteria and implementation processes and aims to establish recommendations for the evolution of the relevant regulations.

The objective was to use former evaluations for DG AGRI, along with a specific study on the U.S. promotion policy, to offer strategic advices for the future of the European promotion policy.

Survey involving 8 Member States on the implementation of evaluation guidelines for rural development programmes.

The guidelines apply to contract relationships between the Ec and Ministries of Agriculture at national level. The study aimed at understanding to which extent involved actors made personal the partnership process.

Eureval-C3E's consultants assisted the DG AGRI Evaluation unit in designing and drafting guidelines, to be used in the Member States, when evaluating rural development programmes in the framework of the EEAGF.

Our mission consisted in training the Unit officers in charge of evaluations of the Common Agriculture Policy to evaluation techniques and to the management of the evaluation process and of the external evaluators missions. Our Centre is also in charge of training sectoral groups dealing with the preparation of terms of reference and follow up of specific evaluation works.

Eureval-C3E's experts and consultants assisted the DG AGRI Evaluation Unit in developing its capacity to manage external evaluations. Our mission covered 15 evaluations over 3 years.It ranged from strategic advice to meta evaluation. It ended in the production of a ""good practice"" guidelines""."

These series of 2 days seminars were dedicated to the members of DG AGRI Sectoral Units. Our role was of preparing workshops during which participants worked on defining evaluation mandates and clarifying and selecting evaluation questions. About 10 Units have benefited from these seminars.