Nigerian Association of Evaluators (NAE) has called on governments, development partners, businesses and professional bodies to use only professional evaluators for their projects, programmes and interventions.
The Imo State Chairman and Deputy National President of NAE, Dr Uzodinma Adirieje,   made the call at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association in Owerri  last Monday.
He said evaluators should undertake formative, summative or any stage of a project, programme or policy implementation, assess the performance of the project and ensure it met the objectives.
He said evaluation also helped to determine the relevance of projects to issues at stake, determine projects’ effectiveness after some period of implementation and assess the projects’ future prospects.
Adirieje described evaluators as professional persons saddled with the responsibility of systematic and objective assessment of the design, implementation and results of on-going or completed projects, programmes or policies.
He said they equally determine the efficiency, effectiveness, impact, sustainability and relevance of projects against organisations’ objectives.
“Evaluation should provide information that is credible and useful, offering concrete lessons learned to help governments, businesses partners and funding agencies make decisions,” he said.
The NAE boss said the association served as an umbrella platform for individual and communities of evaluators for strengthening the professionalisation of evaluation practice in Nigeria.
He said the body also established and maintained partnerships, cooperation, collaboration and affiliation with international evaluation organisations and agencies interested in evaluation aside other responsibilities.
“We possess qualitative and quantitative expertise and experience, emphasising independence and credibility in professional works.
“We are willing and able to take the role of facilitators. Evaluators are strong leaders and team players who have acquired good analytical skills.
“In all, our approaches as evaluators emphasise flexibility, problem-solving and credibility in promoting and supporting broad-based Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Policy; voluntary state/national reports of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and state/national Monitoring Review reports.”
He thanked the chairman and members of the local organising committee for the successful AGM, which he said, was first in the country since the association was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission.