Mid-term performance evaluation of long-term assistance and services for research (LASER) : evaluation report

It also recommends actionable changes that USAID and the implementing partner, Purdue University, can make in the remaining years of implementation to ensure that the program meets its goals and objectives. The mixed-methods evaluation employed two quantitative surveys with a total of 303 respondents and 61 qualitative interviews with seven stakeholder groups, as well as a desk review, to answer the evaluation questions. USAID commissioned the evaluation of LASER in September 2021. LINC, together with its partners, The Cloudburst Group, PDRI DevLab at the University of Pennsylvania (formally DevLab@Duke), and Duke University, conducted the 19-month evaluation. The evaluation found that LASER has an overly ambitious design that has made it difficult for the implementing partner to successfully meet the program’s goals and objectives. Early program and policy results are limited despite a high volume of research products, and stakeholders reported management challenges. LASER has made numerous adaptations in response to these challenges and the quality of the work has improved over time. To meet the award objectives for the remainder of the program, the evaluation team recommends a focus on (1) producing fewer outputs but increasing the policy and program impacts of what is produced and (2) increasing opportunities for low-/middle-income country (LMIC) researcher engagement in each stage of buy-in. The evaluation team also recommends that future iterations of the program be streamlined to focus on research translation and capacity-strengthening for LMIC academic institutions and researchers, two areas where the LASER program excels.