A large Mokoro team, led by Stephen Turner, undertook this global joint evaluation of collaboration among the United Nations Rome-based Agencies (RBAs) between November 2016 to 2021. Since 2008, there have been growing calls, mainly by Member States (through the Governing Bodies and by individual governments), for RBA collaboration to be intensified and optimised. The RBAs have responded with a number of strategic statements about collaboration. In 2018 they signed a memorandum of understanding in this regard. Prior to this evaluation there had been no evaluation of RBA collaboration that could provide credible evidence of the extent and quality of joint RBA performance towards their shared objectives, or explanation of the reasons for that performance. Nor has the potential value added by RBA collaboration been systematically assessed.

This evaluation answers four questions: 1) How relevant is RBA collaboration in contributing to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development? 2) What are the positive, negative, intended and unintended results of RBA collaboration to date? 3) What factors have enabled or hindered the effectiveness of RBA collaboration? 4) What is the added value of RBA collaboration (as opposed to single Agency processes and results) across the different aspects and levels? The evaluation provides important lessons learnt and recommendations regarding the relevance, results, influencing factors, and the added value of RBA collaboration.

This evaluation used a mixed-method, theory-based approach. Data was collected through: document reviews of materials from the headquarters level, country case studies and ‘deep dives’; 12 country case studies conducted in Burkina Faso, Colombia, Egypt, Indonesia, Kenya; Lebanon; Mozambique; Nepal; Niger; Pakistan; Peru; Rwanda; ‘deep dive’ thematic analyses of selected aspects of RBA collaboration at the regional and global level (e.g. resilience in the Sahel, or the State of Food Insecurity); additional reviews of specific thematic areas, such as the climate crisis or South-South and triangular cooperation; global-level, regional-level, and country-level key informant interviews and group discussions; and a short online survey to professional staff of the three RBAs at global, regional and country levels. The timing of the evaluation coincided with the Covid-19 pandemic and data collection was therefore conducted remotely.