Creating business solutions to pov
Building Opportunities and Stronger C
through agri-business and job creatio
Title: Empowering Voices: A Proposed
Unified Model for Inclusive Evaluation in
the Global South
Tanko Mahamudu
Impact and Knowledge Management Manager
West Africa, Ghana
tmahamudu@meda.org • Tel: +233244931301
HARVESTING PROSPERITY
Presentation Overview
1) Introduce MEDA
2) How MEDA Empowers our clients
o MEDA's Core Values
o MERL centric approach to empowering clients
3) Purpose of the Paper: The Unified Model
What MEDA Does?
• Canadian International NGO working in the agri-food system for over 70
years supporting agri-businesses and small holder farmers in the global
south
• MEDA’s core intervention strategy is to provide business solutions to
alleviate poverty, via technical support and financial services including
impact investing, to create decent work opportunities
• MEDA’s Core Values: - Collaboration, respect and entrepreneurship
Objectives of Study
1) Introduce a unified model that was adopted by my team to ensure
that MEL practices are inclusive and promote social justice
2) Explore the methodology for the research in designing the
Unified Model
3) Provide recommendations for the use of this model in the global
south
Why The Unified Model ?
Inclusive Evaluation and Social Justice
• Critical for fostering social justice, accountability, and positive social change
• Especially important in contexts where marginalized voices are silenced (Mertens, 1999)
Challenges in Patriarchal and Religious Extremist Societies
• Power dynamics marginalize women and other disadvantaged groups
• Social norms restrict autonomy, public interaction, and decision-making (Rudman & Glick, 2021)
• Marginalized groups’ needs are obscured, reinforcing inequalities
• Fragmented and Silo Evaluation Approach – leading to holistic analysis of biases inherent
in projects
• Single methodological approaches or contextual pathways for identifying and amplifying potentially marginalized voices
with a holistic smart mix approach missing
Methodology - Scope of the study
Overall Study Design
Study
design
Sequential Mixed Methods Design
Desk Research
Quantitative
Qualitative
Approach
Project documents
Peer-reviewed articles
Technical reports by
other IPs
Women clients – project
annual survey data
Women clients and Project Staff
(IKM and GESI)
Source of
Data
Stratified – Religion, cultural,
war/conflict/terrorism,
nomadic movement,
geography by distance and
terrain
Purposive Sampling
Coverage
Content Analysis
Descriptive statistics
• Frequencies &
Percentages
• Cross-tabs
• Graphs
IDIs, & KIIs
Mode of Data
Collection
Inductive & Deductive
Thematic Analysis
Method of Data
Analysis
Combine insights from document reviews, quantitative and qualitative results for
discussion
Call for Action
Discussion of
Findings
Recommendations
Results of the
Synthesis
Proposed Unified Model
Main Conclusion
ADDRESSING SYSTEMIC BARRIERS
AND METHODOLOGICAL BIASES
REDUCES THE RISK OF
MARGINALIZING VOICES
TWO PERSONAS OF THE
MARGINALIZED ARE IDENTIFIED:
THE HARD-TO-REACH VOICES AND
THE REACHABLE BUT SILENCED
VOICES
THE PROPOSED EVALUATION
MODEL’S FOCUS ON COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT THROUGH
PARTICIPATORY METHODS
EMPOWERS COMMUNITY
PARTICIPATION AND FOSTER
COLLABORATION WITH THE LOCAL
COMMUNITY
THE PROPOSED EVALUATION
MODEL’S EMPHASIS ON
ENHANCING EVALUATION RIGOR
INCORPORATES DIVERSE
PERSPECTIVES TO ENRICH DATA
AND INSIGHTS, ENSURING THAT
RIGOROUS METHODOLOGIES YIELD
MORE RELEVANT RESULTS
Clients’ Feedback
You wouldn’t be hearing
my voice today if it
weren’t for GALS. My
husband would never
have allowed it." – 45year-old woman from
Northern Nigeria
Lessons
1. Adopt Mixed-Methods Approaches: Evaluators should integrate both qualitative and quantitative methods to capture a
comprehensive range of insights, especially from marginalized groups.
2. Prioritize Intersectionality: There is the need to consider the intersection of various identities and experiences in evaluation
frameworks, recognizing the unique challenges faced by different groups.
3. Contextualize Evaluation Frameworks: Adapt existing frameworks that address specific cultural and social dynamics of
communities being evaluated, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.
4. Integrate Reflexivity in Evaluation: Evaluators need to reflects on our own biases, assumptions, and positionality throughout
the evaluation process to ensure a more equitable approach.
5. Recognize Informal Networks: Leveraging informal community networks and influencers to gather insights and facilitate
participation from hard-to-reach voices.
6. Focus on Long-term Impact: Consider the long-term impacts of evaluations on communities and incorporate sustainability into
evaluation designs.
7. Not suitable for rapid assessment
8. Maybe time consuming
THANK YOU
Tanko Mahamudu
Impact and Knowledge Management Manager, GROW2
Central Africa, Ghana
tmahamudu@meda.org • Tel: +233244931301
COOPÉRATIVES AGRICOLES COMMUNALES