GEI Launchpad Winner, Le Barometre, hosts Annual Evaluation Bootcamp in Niger and Benin

In November 2022, the African Institute for Monitoring and Impact Evaluation of Development Policies, Programs and Projects (known as Le Barometre) hosted two Evaluation Bootcamps (in Dosso, Niger and in Grand-Popo, Benin) in partnership with the High Commission for the Modernization of the State of Niger, the Ministry of Planning in Benin, and other organizations. Le Barometre was one of two winners of the GEI Launchpad, a 12-week structured pre-incubation program for early-stage enterprises in developing countries.

The two bootcamps hosted 141 emerging evaluators from Benin, Burkina-Faso, Cameroon, Senegal, Togo, Morocco, and Niger to build their capacities in policy analysis and evaluation and enlarge their professional networks.  

The Evaluation Bootcamp is an annual weeklong on-site training designed by Le Barometre. It combines classroom presentations, group projects and fieldwork, where participants can apply what they learn. The target groups for the training include emerging evaluators, government officers, members of civil society organizations, and young professionals. Participants are usually those who are interested in evaluation practices but have limited technical capacities and lack a professional network.

The 2022 Evaluation Bootcamp was fully designed by evaluators based in West Africa who have important insights on how to address the evaluation capacity gaps in their region. In addition to that, it is worth noting that the Bootcamp organized in Benin was 100% funded by local organizations including Le Barometre (Benin), ACED (Benin), eBase (Cameroon), ASE (Africa) and through participant fees. This is an example of a country-led initiative with regional interest and impact, that is building South-South partnerships around common interests and needs.   

In 2023, Le Barometre is preparing to launch an Incubation Center for Digital Monitoring and Evaluation Solutions to build the capacities of young professional in the field of evaluation and digitalization, to support the development of innovative solutions for policy formulation, analysis, and evaluation.  

Participant evaluations that they felt challenged by the material and that they felt that their knowledge has improved. Participants from Togo made an explicit request for the next Evaluation Bootcamp to happen in Togo.