START FUND LOCALISATION PILOT: External evaluation

This is an independent, external evaluation of the Start Fund’s ‘localisation pilot’ conducted in late 2022. The purpose of the evaluation is to assess the extent to which the global Start Fund is ready in terms of current and planned processes, practices and capacity, to develop into a more locally-led humanitarian model while maintaining its mandate to respond rapidly to the gaps and unmet needs of people in, or at-risk of crisis.

The Terms of Reference give the evaluation a retrospective and forward-looking mandate.

The central retrospective questions are:

  1. Risk and risk mitigation: What types of risk were identified before and during the pilot for the Start Network and the Grant Custodian, and how were they mitigated? (Including environments with proscribed groups)
  1. Access to funding
  • Challenges and successes of Tier 2 level organisations in accessing funding?
  • Appropriateness of Tier 2 level organisation funding restrictions (initial ceiling £30,000, then raised to £60,000?)
  1. Operational effectiveness and efficiency: Challenges and successes of operational adaptations, and whether the general funding conditions were enabling or constraining for timely adaptations?
  2. Organisational impacts:
  • What benefits, if any, of direct funding on Tier 2 level organisational strengths?
  • What has been the relevance, effectiveness and impacts of Start Network provided organisational development initiatives?
  1. Partnership impacts: Has the experience influenced the nature and quality of the partnerships of these Tier 2 organisations with international. but possibly also with other national/local, partners?

The central forward-looking questions are:

  • What is the ambition of the Tier 2 level organisations beyond the pilot?
  • How does the localisation pilot fit within the Start Network’s wider localisation strategy?
  • Does the Start Fund’s operational infrastructure meet the needs of the localisation strategy?
  • Are operational changes recommended for a post-pilot phase?