Terminal Evaluation of the UNEP/GEF Project “Continuing Regional Support for the POPs Global Monitoring Plan under the Stockholm Convention in the Latin American and Caribbean Region” (GEF ID 4881) (2015-2023)

This report is a Terminal Evaluation of the UNEP/GEF project, “Continuing Regional Support for the POPs Global Monitoring Plan under the Stockholm Convention in the Latin American and Caribbean Region (GEF ID 4881)”, implemented between 2015 and 2023. The project's overall goals were to strengthen the capacity for implementation of the updated Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Global Monitoring Plan (GMP) and to create conditions for sustainable monitoring of POPs in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) Region. The evaluation sought to assess project performance (in terms of relevance, effectiveness, and efficiency) and determine the sustainability of its results. The evaluation has two primary purposes: accountability and learning. Data collection methods included: in-person interviews and field observations in Argentina and Brazil, in-depth virtual interviews, and document reviews. Data analysis was based on applying triangulated data to assess performance against a reconstructed Theory of Change and its causal pathways. With an overall performance rating of Moderately Satisfactory, the 4th point on a six-point scale, the main findings include: i) The project contributed to the continuation of monitoring of ambient air with passive air samplers and continued participation in the WHO breast milk survey, ii) The project demonstrated strong performance in effective delivery of expected Outputs that included collection and analysis of over 160 samples of core abiotic and biotic matrices and matrices of national interest from the 11 participating countries, and iii) Areas for improvement included a missing results framework at the time of project approval and subsequent weaknesses in the definition of the sequence between Intermediate Outcomes and higher-level results. The main recommendations to UNEP includes but are not limited to: i) establish formal and standing knowledge management and communication strategies for national GMP coordinators and experts, anchored by Regional Centres, to institutionalize peer support, technical exchange, and rapid problem-solving beyond the project’s lifetime and ii) consider that the project design integrates links between POPs monitoring and policymaking at the national level to support the project's sustainability.