Description
The World Bank wanted an external evaluation-using the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC)'s evaluation criteria-of the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) that would draw lessons from the implementation of its 2021-24 Business Plan and assess the contribution of ESMAP activities and outputs to observed outcomes and impacts.
Service Provided
DHInfrastructure conducted a mixed-methods review of ESMAP grants under the 2021-24 Business Plan. We selected Rwanda, Nigeria, and India as country case studies for a detailed evaluation of all grants and developed a stratified sampling methodology to determine an additional sample of ESMAP grants to be evaluated from all other countries. We reviewed documents related to these grants; developed interview questions and conducted interviews with key informants globally and in case study countries; and answered evaluation questions under the OECD-DAC criteria of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, coherence, and sustainability. We identified lessons learned from ESMAP activities and presented recommendations to the ESMAP team and donors. Most of our recommendations were adopted as part of the next business plan, including streamlining of the program structure and results framework; reporting on actual results (as opposed to expected results); additional resources for gender and diversity mainstreaming; greater focus on energy efficiency, financial innovation, and capacity building; and streamlining of the application and approval process.