United Nations Evaluation Group

History

UNEG was created in January 1984 with the name ‘Inter-Agency Working Group on Evaluation’ (IAWG) which started as an informal group of UN heads of evaluation offices meeting annually to discuss emerging evaluation issues. An evaluation of the IAWG in the year 2000 pointed out that it needed to have a more proactive function with specific deliverables that could be used by the UN evaluation system in their work. The recommendations of the report highlighted the need for structured interaction among UNEG members, annual work planning, work groups to move the agenda forward and developing a website to enhance knowledge sharing. In 2003, the IAWG changed its name to the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG).

Mission

The mission on UNEG is to promote and support the independence, credibility and usefulness of the evaluation units in the UN system. According to its Strategy 2014-2019, UNEG's work is focused on four strategic objectives:

1) Evaluation functions and products of UN entities meet the UNEG Norms and Standards for evaluation;

2) UN entities and partners use evaluation in support of accountability and programme learning;

3) Evaluation informs UN system-wide initiatives and emerging demands; and

4) UNEG benefits from and contributes to an enhanced global evaluation profession.

Membership

UNEG currently has 45 members and 3 observers. Membership reserved for the units responsible for evaluation in the UN system, including the specialized agencies, funds, programmes and affiliated organizations. These units should have, or aspire to have, the required professional knowledge, experience and responsibility for evaluation as defined by the UNEG Norms and Standards for Evaluation (2005).

Members:

Observers: