This guideline seeks to help countries who are thinking of establishing a national evaluation system (NES) and suggests the minimum requirements for doing so. At present in Africa there are three countries with established NESs: Benin, Uganda and South Africa. This guideline draws from the experience of the three countries and more widely, drawing on authors from those countries.

The guideline covers what an evaluation system is (section 3), why it is important (section 4), when it is relevant (section 5), the components of a NES (section 6), diagnosing the situation prior to establishing a NES (section 7), the approach to establishing a NES (section 8), phases in establishing a NES (section 9), critical success factors (section 10) and the basic conditions needed (section 11).