Check-lists
Quality Assurance

Quality of the inception report

• 1. Meeting needs
• 2. Relevant scope
• 3. Defensible design
• Recommendation

The report explains clearly and thoroughly the way in which the evaluation team understands the following points:

• The requirements featuring in the evaluation's regulatory framework, in particular in terms of accountability.
• The expectations expressed in the terms of reference.
• The requirements expressed by the reference group members.

The suggested evaluation questions and their related judgment criteria reflect the requirements identified and the intended use of the evaluation.

Based on these various points, the report indicates the remaining points to be clarified if necessary.

The report describes the evaluation's central scope and justifies the choices made to delineate it. It specifies the overlaps with the related policies that are going to be examined, and justifies those choices.

The suggested evaluation questions and their related judgment criteria reflect:

• The results and impacts identified through the reconstruction of the intervention logic.
• The various sectors, themes and instruments.
• DAC's evaluation criteria, bearing in mind efficiency and sustainability, as well as coherence and community added value.

The report describes the data collection and analysis method to be applied throughout the desk phase, as well as the data collection and analysis strategy intended for the field phase.

It shows how this method will be used to appropriately address the whole set of evaluation questions, and then to produce a synthesis for the purposes of an overall assessment. The choices are discussed and defended against other options.

Experience shows that there is a tendency to use certain key terms to define the objectives, write the questions or delineate the scope without making certain that they are equally understood by everyone (for example: conducive economic environment, basic education, etc.). Misunderstandings may be hidden throughout the next phases and may arise upon the final report discussion, this having devastating effects on the evaluation quality. At this point, it is advisable to ensure that the key terms are accurately defined.