On 10 June 2026, the UNFPA 2025 annual report on the evaluation function and the independent evaluation of UNFPA support to the 2020 round of population and housing censuses, including the management statements were presented to the Executive Board Annual Session 2026.
The annual report on evaluation details the performance, achievements and challenges for the evaluation function in 2025. The report also captures the initiatives underway to ensure evaluation is equipped to accelerate the delivery of the UNFPA Strategic Plan 2026–2029. Highlighting a forward looking vision for evaluation, Joel Rehnstrom, Director a.i. of the UNFPA Independent Evaluation Office remarked, “As the UNFPA Strategic Plan 2026-2029 is rolled out, we remain committed to providing high-quality evidence to inform actions and decisions, and advance rights and choices for all.”
Pio Smith, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme) a.i., delivered the management commentary, welcoming the evaluation function's strong performance and reaffirming UNFPA’s commitment to an independent and credible evaluation function.
The presentation of the census evaluation detailed key highlights of the exercise, emphasizing its importance in informing UN80 discussions and advancing demographic resilience under the UNFPA Strategic Plan 2026–2029. In response, UNFPA management reaffirmed the organization’s full commitment to implementing its recommendations.
The African members of the Executive Board—comprising Côte d'Ivoire, Madagascar, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Chad, Tunisia, and Zambia— welcomed UNFPA’s efforts to strengthen evaluation and accountability, urging that lessons learned be systematically integrated into national programme designs. They emphasized aligning evaluation functions with broader United Nations reforms while incorporating African indigenous knowledge into evaluation methodologies to ensure relevant recommendations. The Group also highlighted the importance of leveraging innovation and digital technologies to improve evaluation quality and timeliness.
Further, a joint statement by 21 Member States (Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Georgia, Germany, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Luxemburg, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom) commended the UNFPA Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) for maintaining a strong and adaptive evaluation function, though they noted that evaluation funding remains below target. The statement welcomed UNFPA’s commitment to innovation, specifically highlighting the development of an AI-powered Evaluation Assistant and investments in young professionals. Finally, while recognizing progress in building national evaluation capacities, the Member States highlighted ongoing challenges, including a lack of dedicated M&E staff at the country level and limited regional capacity to support decentralized evaluations.
To explore the deliberations, watch excerpts of the UNFPA evaluation session at the Executive Board.
