Evaluation Matters

WHO Evaluation Newsletter: Issue 14, August 2025

Evaluation: a driver for accountability, learning, and evidence-based decision-making

In this edition, we describe several key milestones achieved by WHO (its Member States and the Secretariat) to strengthen its evaluation function and ensure it continues to drive accountability, learning, evidence-based decision-making and organizational performance improvements. In May 2025, at its 157th session, the Executive Board approved the updated WHO Evaluation Policy (2025) enhancing the independence of the evaluation function, reaffirming clear standards and establishing minimum coverage norms for the entire Organization. Key updates include references to improved planning and resourcing, stronger alignment with oversight functions, and new measures to increase the use, communication and monitoring of evaluations across the Organization. 

The WHO evaluation annual report considered by Executive Board (EB157/4) presents more detailed information on the significant step-up in productivity of the WHO Evaluation Office and Regional Office evaluations (corporate decentralized, country programme and joint evaluations).   

This renewed focus on evaluation comes at a pivotal moment for WHO and for global health. As the IEOAC report to PBAC42 noted, “evaluation is a tool for improving Organizational performance, ...demonstrating the programmatic value of WHO, ….and helps to inform the current prioritization process. Evaluation is an essential oversight function of the Organization, even in the current difficult circumstances, and it is important to ensure adequate resourcing and proper succession planning for the leadership of the evaluation function”.  

Building on this momentum, WHO released a new video, Evaluation: Building Trust, Driving Impact, to explain how evaluation enhances planning, sharpens decision-making and drives stronger public health outcomes across the Organization and beyond. 

Together, the new policy, video and evaluation-driven insights reflect WHO’s strong endorsement of evaluation as a tool to build trust, guide action and improve health outcomes worldwide.

In the Spotlight

The latest news and updates from the WHO Evaluation Office. Updates are also published on our webpage here.

Executive Board approves the revised WHO Evaluation Policy (2025)  

In May 2025, the 157th Executive Board approved WHO’s revised Evaluation Policy (2025), updating the 2018 version and reinforcing accountability, transparency, evidence-based decision-making and organizational learning. The updated policy enhances independence, sets clear coverage standards, and ensures stronger support for evaluations across the Organization. Highlights of the expanded policy include minimum coverage norms, a new theory of change, clearer roles and funding responsibilities, strengthened evaluation independence, improved planning using risk assessments, and greater use of evaluations to inform decision-making and learning across WHO. 

To read the article, click here. 

Two evaluations considered by the 78th World Health Assembly 

Given the Health Assembly’s requests for two evaluations completed in late 2024 and January 2025, the reports were considered at the May 2025 Health Assembly in the context of the respective subject agenda. These were the Evaluation of the Member State Mechanism on Substandard and Falsified Medical Products as reported in EB156/12, and the Mid-term Evaluation of the WHO Global Coordination Mechanism on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (GCM/NCD), reported in A78/INF./2. Both reports featured prominently in Member States’ discussions for the respective agenda item, illustrating the strategic value of the evaluations, the use of their recommendations in decision-making and guiding follow-on actions. 

New video highlights the critical role of evaluation in building trust and measuring public health impact 

WHO’s new animated video, Evaluation: Building Trust, Driving Impact, explores how evaluation helps the Organization learn, adapt and strengthen accountability. It highlights how evaluation supports better planning, informed decisions, and builds trust with partners and donors. 

To read the article and watch the video, click here.  

Four practical tips for actionable and effective evaluation recommendations 

Well-crafted evaluation recommendations are more than just words on a page; they are the catalyst that transforms evidence into action and drives change. This article explores how to turn insights into impact with practical strategies for creating recommendations that are realistic, inclusive and truly transformative. 

To read the article, click here. 

Overview of recent evaluations

A summary of all the recently completed evaluations, including key findings. Reports and management responses are published on our website here.

Evaluation of Global Health Days (2019–2023)  

WHO's mandate includes raising awareness about global health issues and mobilizing support for action globally, regionally and nationally. One strategy in this effort is the observance of Global Health Days and Weeks (“the Days”, “the Weeks”), which serve as campaigns to highlight priority health concerns. The evaluation served both accountability and learning purposes, supporting WHO’s responsibility to stakeholders, including Member States, the Executive Board and participants in WHO-led global health campaigns. It assessed the effectiveness and impact of WHO's Global Health Days, ensuring alignment with global health priorities and improving campaign execution. The evaluation focused on eleven specific Global Health Days and two weeks mandated by the World Health Assembly during the period 20192023, and provided lessons and recommendations to enhance future campaigns to support sustainable improvements in coordination, measurement and learning. 

To read the report, click here.  

Mid-term evaluation of the Global Task Force on Cholera Control (2017–2030)  

The evaluation had a dual purpose of accountability and learning. It assessed the relevance, effectiveness and sustainability of the Global Task Force on Cholera Control (GFTCC), established by WHO in 1992, and its progress on the 2017–2030 strategy midway through implementation. Key lessons and recommendations support the direction of travel of the GTFCC to 2030, and inform future strategic decisions and operational adjustments considering evolving global and local cholera dynamics. A particular focus was on coordination and programmatic delivery at the global, regional and country levels by the GTFCC and its partners.  

To read the report, click here. 

Evaluation of WHO’s contribution to water, sanitation, hygiene and health: the –WHO Global WASH Strategy 2018–2025

The evaluation of WHO’s contribution to Water, Sanitation, Hygiene (WASH) and Health focuses on the impact of the WHO Global WASH Strategy 2018–2025. The strategy aims to improve global health by promoting access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene, in alignment with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 and the human right to water and sanitation. This evaluation explores the strategy's overall effectiveness, including its relevance to global health priorities, its ability to address emerging challenges and the extent to which it has influenced health systems globally.   

For the report, click here. For the management response, click here. 

Note: There are important crossover lessons between the WASH and Global Task Force on Cholera Control evaluations.  

Evaluating Somalia’s humanitarian crisis (2021–2024): lessons for future action 

What can we learn from Somalia’s response to its worst drought in four decades? This independent evaluation highlights how humanitarian efforts played a vital role in preventing famine and saving lives, while also identifying opportunities to strengthen inclusion, coordination and accountability. Offering valuable insights for future responses, the evaluation shares lessons that can help improve the effectiveness and impact of humanitarian action.  

To read the article and the report, click here. 

Independent Evaluation of the WHO Ethics Review Committee 

An independent decentralized evaluation of the WHO Research Ethics Review Committee (ERC) affirmed its critical role in safeguarding ethical standards in WHO-supported research involving human participants. Recognized globally for its high-quality reviews, the ERC has proven to be especially vital during health emergencies like COVID-19. The evaluation found that the ERC and its Secretariat operate effectively despite limited resources, but also highlighted areas for improvement, including timeliness, clarity of processes and stronger coordination with WHO Regional Ethics Committees.  

For the report, click here. For the management response, click here. 

Mid-Term Evaluation of the WHO Global Coordination Mechanism on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (GCM/NCD): 2022–2024 

This evaluation highlights the vital role of multisectoral collaboration in addressing the global NCD crisis. Covering progress, challenges and lessons learned, the evaluation offers actionable recommendations to strengthen stakeholder engagement, knowledge-sharing and national-level implementation. As NCDs continue to drive premature mortality, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, this report provides timely insights to enhance the effectiveness and impact of the mechanism’s work to support multisectoral interventions. The evaluation executive summary was presented to the 78th World Health Assembly (see A78/INF./2). This was also the third WHO independent evaluation of the GCM (the others being in 2017 and 2020).  

For the report, click here. For the management response, click here. 

Joint independent decentralized evaluation of the UN Inter-agency Taskforce on the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable diseases (2024) 

The Taskforce, established in 2013 through a United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) resolution (E/RES/2013/12), comprises over 40 UN agencies and intergovernmental organizations. Its secretariat, based at WHO, coordinates the Taskforce’s work. The evaluation aims to assess its strategy, interventions, operations, and overall performance to guide the next strategic phase beginning in 2026. It will review key achievements against stated objectives in its earlier strategies, document critical lessons learned and provide recommendations to inform the Taskforce’s 2026–2030 strategic plan and future actions. 

Note: There are important crossover lessons between the GCM/NCD and the UN Inter-agency Taskforce on NCDs evaluations. 

Upcoming evaluations for completion

An overview of evaluations close to completion.  

Formative Evaluation of the Global Health Cluster 

This evaluation assesses the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, and coordination of the Global Health Cluster (GHC) from 2014 to 2025, with a focus on the past six years. It aims to generate actionable recommendations to strengthen humanitarian coordination and inform the next GHC Strategy (2026–2030). Key recommendations focus on streamlining core functions, supporting locally-led action, improving data systems and strengthening links between humanitarian response and health system development. 

Evaluation of WHO Functional Reviews in the African Region (2017-2019) 

This evaluation examines the outcomes of the WHO Regional Office for Africa's functional reviews of 47 country offices, a key initiative under the African Regional Office’s Transformation Agenda launched in 2015. The reviews aimed to ensure WHO’s country presence is better aligned with national priorities, with the right skills and structures to deliver high-quality technical support and operational leadership. The evaluation assesses achievements, challenges and lessons learned from the implementation of these changes, providing insights to guide future reforms and strengthen WHO’s ability to respond effectively at the country level.  

Evaluation of the WHO country strategic planning process, including Country Cooperation Strategies  

This evaluation assesses WHO’s Country Office strategic planning process, with a special focus on the Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS) to determine how best to effectively guide country-level support and support alignment with national health priorities. With increased emphasis on ensuring country level impact, along with greater allocations of human and financial resources to country offices, the evaluation aims to further harmonize WHO’s planning and support systems at the country level and ensure that the CCS mechanism is maximized in its design, planning and implementation within a result-based management framework and that it remains relevant, results-focused and responsive to global and local health challenges. 

Country Programme Evaluations 

WHO country office evaluations assess WHO’s contributions within countries, ensuring alignment with national health priorities and the Organization’s broader strategic goals. They are vital for strengthening accountability, learning and performance across WHO's work at the national level. By focusing on country-specific results, they provide essential insights into what works, what needs improvement and how WHO can better support Member States.  

The Evaluation Office will publish completed evaluations for Bhutan, Jordan and Namibia in the first two weeks of August 2025. Other Country Programme Evaluations are in process for Armenia, Ethiopia, Lebanon, Mongolia, Rwanda, Somalia and Syria.  

Regional and Country Focus

Evaluation news and updates from WHO regional and country offices. 

From Evidence to Action: WHO South-East Asia Regional Office’s 2024 Evaluation Milestones

The WHO South-East Asia Regional Office (SEARO) embarked on a pivotal evaluation journey in 2024, which stands as a testament to the Organization’s unwavering commitment to improving health outcomes through systematic evaluations. 

In 2024, SEARO expanded its evaluation efforts on WHO's contribution to health issues like the COVID-19 pandemic and noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Notable innovations included real-time evaluations and remote data collection methods, which enhanced rapid assessments and stakeholder engagement. Emphasizing health equity, SEARO focused on the inclusion of marginalized communities, leading to improved programme design within evaluations. Nevertheless, challenges remain including resource constraints, the availability of inconsistent data and variable stakeholder engagement.  

Building on the WHO South-East Asia Regional Framework for Strengthening Evaluation for Learning and Development, originally developed in 2018 and revised in 2022, SEARO continues to foster an environment of accountability, learning and innovation, guided by the WHO South-East Asia Regional roadmap for results and resilience launched in 2024. Through these efforts SEARO is enhancing the effectiveness of its programmes and setting a benchmark for other regions and health organizations worldwide. At the core of this journey lies the commitment to promote health equity and ensure that every individual, regardless of background, has access to quality health care.  

Key evaluations completed in 2024 included assessments of the maternal perinatal death surveillance response in Nepal, an evaluation of the decade for strengthening human resources for health in WHO SEA Region 2015–2024, NCDs service delivery within primary health care in the SEA region, assessment of WHO’s contribution to implement a health care waste management project in Maldives and an evaluation of COVID-19 surveillance and contact tracing in the region. Several evaluations were undertaken region-wide, as well as at the country level. The upcoming country-level evaluation of WHO’s contribution in Bhutan will inform the development of the future Country Cooperation Strategy. 

The lessons learned in 2024 highlight the importance of building local evaluation capacity and adapting methodologies to public health challenges. As SEARO looks forward, these insights will inform future health strategies and decision-making.  

Events

WHO evaluation specialists share and exchange expertise globally. Here is a round-up of past and future events we are participating in or hosting.

WHO launches practical guide on using theories of change for health policy and planning

WHO and the Veredas Institute launched a new guide on evidence-informed theories of change (ToCs), highlighting their role in making health policies more effective and accountable. During the global panel discussion held in June 2025, speakers stressed that ToCs help link actions to results, foster collaboration and adapt strategies to local contexts. The guide was described as a practical, flexible tool for planning, monitoring and evaluation that can enhance transparency and support real improvements in people’s lives.

To read the article and watch the event recording, click here. 

gLOCAL Evaluation Week 2025: 2–6 June 2025 

The gLOCAL Evaluation Week is one of the world’s largest knowledge-sharing events in monitoring and evaluation, bringing together practitioners, organizations, and learners across sectors and regions. It is convened by the Global Evaluation Initiative. This year's event brought together global partners under the theme, Evaluation for a Better Future: Environmental Sustainability, Inclusion, and Peace, to explore how evaluation can drive systemic and sustainable change.  

For details of the event, click here. 

78th World Health Assembly: 19–27 May 2025 

The 78th World Health Assembly made history with the adoption of the first WHO Pandemic Agreement, reinforcing global solidarity and equity in health emergency response. Member States highlighted the vital role of evaluation in driving accountability, learning, and smarter decision-making, signalling strong support for evidence-based action across all levels of health systems. 

For details of the event, click here.