The growth of impact evaluation for international development: how much have we learned?

Abstract

This article examines the content of a web-based repository of published impact evaluations of international development interventions. To populate this repository, we conducted a systematic search and screening process. We find that of the 2259 studies published from 1981 to 2012, annual publication increased dramatically after 2008. Most studies are on health, education, social protection and agriculture and are concentrated in South Asia, East Africa, South and Central America and Southeast Asia. There are statistically significant differences in time between end line data collection and publishing by the publication type, and institutional affiliation of authors has shifted towards countries in North America and Europe.