A group of performance management experts and sector experts in energy, climate change, and community development, led by Project Manager Hongmin Chun from the Korea Institute for Development Strategy (KDS), visited project sites in Timor-Leste and Indonesia to conduct a joint mid-term evaluation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as part of the performance management for the Accelerating Clean Energy Access to Reduce Inequality (ACCESS) project.
The ACCESS (Accelerating Clean Energy Access to Reduce Inequality) project is implemented in 22 villages across four provinces in Indonesia and 25 villages across three provinces in Timor-Leste, utilizing tailored solutions based on renewable energy(solar power) to improve access to essential public resources such as electricity and water. This initiative aims to improve the quality of life for vulnerable communities and enhance their economic and social self-reliance. Particularly, this project holds significant meaning as it is implemented through a South-South Triangular Cooperation framework between Korea, Indonesia, and Timor-Leste, funded by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
KDS is responsible for Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) for the project and has carried out a comprehensive on-site visit and assessment across all project areas through the UNDP-KDS joint mid-term evaluation. Importantly, through in-depth interviews and on-site investigations with key stakeholders, including relevant agency representatives and project beneficiaries, the evaluation identified both the negative and positive impacts of the project, as well as risk factors reflecting the voices from the field. Based on these findings, the progress and performance of the project were reviewed against the initial plan, identifying improvement factors to enhance project effectiveness.
Following this, KDS held a dissemination workshop to share findings with key stakeholders. This remote workshop facilitated the discussion on improvement/feedback points derived from the mid-term evaluation, supporting the incorporation of these points considering the remaining project period and current progress, thus contributing to risk management and increasing the project goal achievement rate.
In 2024, a final evaluation of the project will be conducted to assess its effectiveness from both quantitative and qualitative perspectives. Additionally, through a final dissemination workshop, the outcomes of the final evaluation will be shared with the stakeholders to aid in understanding overall project performance achievements, support the establishment of post-management action plans, and highlight the importance of continuous triangular cooperation. Particularly, active involvement of relevant agency representatives will enhance ownership, contribute to project effectiveness and sustainability, and derive recommendations for future similar projects to contribute to the spread of project outcomes.
