Performance evaluation of the innovation for agricultural training and education (INNOVATE) project

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University implemented this project as the Management Entity and was joined by three sub-awardees. This final evaluation focused on questions related to institutional sustainability, capacity development, institutional and stakeholder use of InnovATE materials, and project response to AET practitioners and USAID Mission needs. The evaluation used document reviews and remote key informant interviews to collect data. The Evaluation Team (ET) found that InnovATE achieved planned objectives in developing and disseminating valuable educational and training materials and contributed to AET’s knowledge base in several cross-cutting fields, including gender, vocational training, youth entrepreneurship, quality assurance, and accountability. Several other objectives were not achieved, however, partly due to lack of Mission responsiveness, and limited in-country outreach activities. The ET recommends that similar projects in the future develop viable plans to work with Missions to create awareness, get buy-in and support from the outset, and create closer linkages between other Feed the Future projects, Missions, and institutions in host-country.