PROGRAM AID EVALUATION - DUTCH PRACTICE AND A CASE FOR AN ECONOMIC AND INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH AT MULTI-DONOR LEVEL

With the introduction of Structural Adjustment Programmes, the objecti ves of programme aid shifted from relief of foreign exchange constrain ts to supporting policy reforms. The appraisal criteria for providing programme aid were modified accordingly, but the evaluation criteria d id not change. A review of evaluation studies of Dutch programme aid a nd of Aide Memoires of Joint Evaluation Missions in the framework of t he Special Programme of Assistance to African countries undertaking st ructural adjustment suggests the need for an appropriate multi-donor f orum that addresses both the economic and institutional aspects of the macro-effectiveness of programme aid.