Introduction
A Response to Nigeria's Evidence Gap
Nigeria continues to face persistent challenges with evidence generation, data quality, policy coherence, and public-sector accountability gaps that weaken national planning, service delivery, and long-term development outcomes. Despite the growing recognition of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) as a strategic governance tool, the country still lacks a legislated national M&E policy, a coordinated evaluation system, and accredited institutional pathways for developing evaluation professionals. Fragmented practices across MDAs, limited evaluation uptake, inadequate capacity within government and academia, and the absence of M&E degree programmes further constrain national progress. To move beyond this, the Nigerian Association of Evaluators (NAE) has continued to play a catalytic role in mobilising professionals, advocating for institutionalisation, strengthening capacity, and championing indigenous evaluation models like the Made-in-Africa approach that aligns evaluation with Nigeria’s governance priorities. The 2026 Evaluation Conference is therefore a deliberate response to these systemic gaps, designed to consolidate momentum, build a unified national voice, and position evaluation as an indispensable national asset.
About the Conference
Evaluation as a National Asset
This theme positions evaluation not only as a technical practice but as a strategic national resource essential for governance transformation, public accountability, resource optimisation, and evidence-driven development. It aligns with NAE’s ambition to be a credible national reference body and to champion evaluation’s integration into government systems, legislation, higher education, and professional regulation.
Conference Structure
The #NAE2026EvaluationConference is designed as a 3-day event, balancing plenary engagements, expert sessions, practitioner-led dialogues, capacity-strengthening activities, and evidence-sharing. The structure combines both appointed sessions (keynotes, panels, masterclasses) and submitted sessions (paper presentations, innovation clusters, poster exhibitions) — creating inclusive spaces for policymakers, researchers, practitioners, academia, development partners, private sector leaders, and young evaluators.
Conference Strands
Here we are seeking to reclaim African knowledge, strengthening M&E education, and professionalising evaluation practice, arrived at through these sub-strands:
- Indigenous Evaluation Practices & Made-in-Africa Evaluation Exploring African-centred methodologies, community accountability systems, cultural lenses, and the relevance of indigenous knowledge.
- Evaluation Education and University Integration Designing M&E academic programmes, Centres of Excellence, curriculum reform, and faculty capacity strengthening.
Here we drive at building a strong national architecture for evaluation as a public good, followed through these sub-strands:
- National Evaluation Policy & Legal Frameworks The push toward a National M&E Policy, legislative advocacy, and the National Institute of Evaluation Bill.
- Institutionalisation within MDAs & Sub-National Systems Strengthening planning, performance systems, budgeting integration, and state-level evaluation units.
- Evaluation Use, Uptake & Evidence-to-Policy Pathways Enhancing evidence utilisation, political economy considerations, and accountability mechanisms.
Here we explore new frontiers shaping evaluation practice globally and nationally, made available to our ecosystem through these sub-strands:
- Artificial Intelligence, Data Science & Technology in Evaluation Machine learning, automated evidence synthesis, dashboards, remote sensing, and adaptive analytics.
- Climate, Resilience & Humanitarian Evaluation Evidence for climate adaptation, fragility contexts, peacebuilding, and resilience systems.
- Youth Innovations & Intergenerational Evidence Leadership Spotlighting YEEs’ contributions, disruptive evaluation ideas, and youth-driven models.
Session Formats
SIX WAYS TO ENGAGE
APPOINTED SESSIONS
Keynote Addresses
Distinguished national and international leaders offering strategic insights and thought leadership on evaluation, governance, and development systems; setting the intellectual tone with visionary perspectives, policy reflections, and calls to action.
Panel Discussions
A 60-minute moderated dialogue among experts interrogating national priorities and systemic issues; a multi-perspective conversation exploring pathways for policy reform and institutional strengthening.
Masterclasses
Intensive, skills-oriented sessions led by seasoned practitioners, blending conceptual grounding with hands-on exercises, demonstrations, and real-world case examples in MERL.
SUBMITTED SESSIONS
Paper Presentations
One-hour sessions where evaluators, researchers, academics, and emerging professionals share evidence, methodological innovations, and lessons from practice, followed by focused dialogue.
Innovation Clusters
20-minute flexible, participatory spaces exploring emerging ideas, technologies, and contextual evaluation approaches through reflective prompts and collective inquiry.
Poster Presentation
A visual, interactive space to showcase tools, dashboards, evaluation results, conceptual models, and methodological advances, with direct engagement between presenters and attendees.
Register for #NAE2026EvaluationConference
Secure your place among policymakers, researchers, practitioners, and young evaluators shaping Nigeria’s evaluation ecosystem. Registration is required to attend all conference sessions — 2–4 November 2026, Abuja, Nigeria.