Innovative materials for population action

External evaluation covered the period through 5/90. Project materials are perceived as attractive in format and relevant and useful in content by developing country policymakers, Missions, and cooperating agencies, all of whom strongly support a continuation of project activities. Country- specific booklets developed under subprojects have been particularly useful, and in general there is much more demand for local and regional than for global materials. A third of developing country policymakers reported that project materials have made a noticeable contribution to population policy in their countries. Extensive collaboration with other cooperating agencies has also been a project strength. On the negative side, the project needs to strengthen its distribution system. The current mailing list strategy is costly, labor-intensive, and inefficient; there is a lack of retrievable, easily analyzed information on distribution; and materials are often being used by audiences other than policymakers. Also, because many materials are oriented towards large geographic areas, dialect and word selection are sometimes problematic. Finally, while the project"s internal evaluation system has provided useful and focused information, evaluation efforts have often relied on unsystematic and potentially biased samples. A follow-on project with more effective distribution and evaluation systems is recommended.