Evaluation plays a pivotal role in determining the success of EU external cooperation, serving as an integral component of the intervention cycle. High-quality evaluations are essential to inform our policy decision-making processes, as well as our planning and programming exercises, by incorporating relevant data, knowledge, and lessons learned.
With that in mind, the purpose of this evaluation was to provide an overall independent, evidence-based assessment of the EU external action past and current efforts to contribute to the achievement of SDGs and to identify key lessons to inform future strategies, programmes and actions in pursuit of SDG progress. Focused on the period from 2016 to 2021, it examined contributions to SDGs made by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) and the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR).
More specifically, the evaluation questions were organised to assess the extent to which EU-established processes and tools have supported SDG contributions, the role of partnerships and coordination in enhancing SDGs, the mainstreaming of SDGs throughout EU practice and thinking, and the overall contribution of EU external actions to SDG achievement.
After the presentation of the findings, conclusions and recommendations contained in the final evaluation report by members of the evaluation team, DG INTPA representatives will share the response of the Commission services to the recommendations and the Commission’s perspective on SDGs going forward.