The Center of Excellence (CoE) for Evaluation and Policy Research was established in March 2021 as part of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Monitoring and Evaluation Support Activity II (MEASURE II) Partnering for Excellence in Evaluation and Research grant awarded to SEBS. The CoE strives to serves as a centralized training facility and thought leader to support the sustainability of efforts to build research and evaluation capacity and provide monitoring and evaluation services in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Specifically, working closely with experts in social science research and program evaluation from across BiH, the CoE will: 

• Conduct surveys in relevant social and economic policy fields
• Conduct data analyses and develop survey reports
• Develop conceptual, methodological, and policy models and presenting them to relevant ministries, employment bureaus, chambers of commerce, and industry leaders
• Design and produce policy papers to identify key social and economic issues
• Assist BiH government institutions in designing and conducting rigorous evaluations of programs and initiatives

Through these activities, the CoE will build close cooperation with key stakeholders, private and public sectors, and academia and promote collaboration and evidence-based decision making at all government levels in BiH.

PARTNERING FOR EXCELLENCE IN EVALUATION AND RESEARCH (PEER), A USAID-funded Monitoring and Evaluation Support Activity II, Grant Under Contract

In alignment with the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Law of 2016, USAID is committed to the implementation of rigorous monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) activities as a critical component of achieving progress towards the Agency’s development goals. USAID in Bosnia and Herzegovina (USAID/BiH) is further committed to fostering a results-oriented culture and continuing efforts to strengthen the Mission’s MEL systems, including the MEL capacity of the Mission’s implementing partners. With this in mind, USAID/BiH awarded the MEASURE II in BiH to IMPAQ International, LLC. As part of MEASURE II, to increase collaboration and strengthen the capacity of underutilized local institutions with deep roots in BiH who can deliver high-quality evaluations and public policy research, MEASURE II launched a grants program in 2021. In collaborating with local institutions, the MEASURE II grants program will help USAID/BiH place local systems at the heart of the achievement of sustainable, resilient results and strengthen commitment and capacity for MEL in BiH. Under this program, the School of Economics and Business (SEBS) was selected to partner with MEASURE II and received a grant: Partnering for Excellence in Evaluation and Research (PEER) in March of 2021.