We support funders and implementers in reviewing programmes, conducting annual-reviews, mid-term reviews and final evaluations that independently validate results and feed into adaptive management. We also provide ex-post sustainability evaluations and case studies which enable donors and implementers to capture lessons that can inform portfolio performance as well as wider good practice. We offer an innovative approach to the study of sustainability for systemic change programmes sustainability and a user-friendly framework for case study development. Our process involves working closely with programme teams to support them in implementing changes on the basis of review results.
Review of, and support to, Béninclusif project
Swisscontact / SDC, Bénin
The Béninclusif project aims to build capacities in the fish farming / processing and citrus fruit sectors. Early this year Springfield were asked to review project progress and performance and to develop plans to address any barriers to the delivery of project objectives, together with a set of solution-oriented actions for 2022 and 2023.
Following in-country field work, our team elaborated a strategy with specific steps to facilitate the development of a more sustainable and inclusive capacity building system in the two target sectors. Other outputs included systems maps for both sectors in the specific context of capacity building, and a sustainability analysis of key functions and the main actors. We developed some tools to support further systems analysis and to elaborate an intervention strategy, and we produced and presented a final mission report.
External review of Musika Development Initiatives Zambia Limited
Sida, Zambia
Musika is a not-for-profit company that aims to reduce poverty and create wealth in rural Zambia by stimulating business relationships between the corporate sector and smallholder farmers. Springfield conducted a multi-phase external review, with wide-ranging objectives, including providing both a retrospective evaluation of Musika’s performance in achieving its programmatic and operational objectives to date, whilst also assessing the appropriateness of Musika’s current approach and organisational capacity for achieving their overall objectives in three key areas: performance, approach and organisational capacity. This informed recommendations for possible adjustments to Musika’s current and future business plans and strategies.
Analysis And Modelling Of Climate Smart Service Delivery Models
SNV, East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda)
Contracted through SNV’s COVID-19 Response and Resilience Initiative for Food Value Chains in Africa (CORE) programme, Springfield is supporting SNV teams in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to assess experience, capture lessons, and strengthen their programmatic support to climate smart service providers across the region. The assignment entails an extensive programme of service delivery model (SDM) analyses that seeks to explore the nature of model resilience in terms of business viability, ecosystem functionality, and sustainability of climate smart outcomes. The work will culminate in the modelling and definition of a set of sustainable, climate smart agriculture service delivery model ‘archetypes’ to support a diverse array of service providers across the region to strengthen and render more resilient the climate smart services they provide to smallholder farmers and producers.
Sustainable Cocoa Production Program (SCPP) Case Study Series
Swisscontact
This case study series examines the experience of a PPDP in Indonesia’s cocoa sector over nearly two decades, how the partnership evolved as the sector changed, and its contribution to transforming Indonesia’s cocoa industry as it faced global and domestic challenges. Seven development organisations and eleven private cocoa buyers contributed approximately USD 55m to the PPDP – the Partnership – making it one of the largest partnerships between donors and businesses in a commodity sector. The Partnership focused on improving production and building sustainable supply chains. Key features of the partnership were its clarity of purpose, ownership by key stakeholders and the involvement of a ‘lynchpin’ funder, SECO, and implementing organisation, Swisscontact, throughout, which provided continuity and stability.
Market Development Facility, Silage Intervention
Palladium/DFAT, Pakistan
The Market Development Facility (MDF) is Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) funded initiative and is being implemented by Palladium in partnership with Swisscontact in five countries. Silage is MDF’s flagship intervention area which has seen unparalleled success and continues to contribute to the country’s results and systemic change which the program strives to achieve. The Springfield Centre worked with the MDF monitoring and results measurement team to complete a systemic change assessment of MDF’s achievements in silage at the close of the intervention, to act as a ‘baseline’ for a future sustainability assessment to be completed in 2022. In tandem, Springfield updated a case study which captures and communicates the programme’s contribution to systemic change in the fodder market for smallholder farmers. The updated case study reflects MDF’s most recent strategic and measurement frameworks, while communicating MDF’s approach and impact in non-technical language to a broad audience.
Final Independent Evaluation of The ILO Lab, Phase II
ILO Lab (funded by Sida)
The ‘Market Systems Development for Decent Work’ project, known as the Lab, is a global project implemented by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). The purpose of the project is to institutionalise and mainstream a market systems approach to decent work, both inside and outside the ILO.
The purpose of this evaluation was to contribute to both accountability and learning. From an accountability perspective, the objectives of the evaluation are to explore the performance of the ILO Lab in Phase II (Lab 2) through five key criteria, specifically its relevance and strategic fit; progress and effectiveness; management effectiveness; impact orientation and sustainability; and efficiency. From a learning perspective, the objective of the evaluation is to understand what worked, what didn’t work, and why, in order to inform the design and implementation of future knowledge generation projects.
Enter Growth Sustainability Assessment
ILO Lab (funded by Sida), Sri Lanka
Springfield conducted an ex-poste sustainability evaluation of the Enter-Growth programme a full ten years after the programme ended. To our knowledge, this was the first ex-poste sustainability assessment of its kind in the field, and therefore required defining sustainability of system change in assessable terms and developing an approach to apply this definition. This new approach was the then tested with selected interventions of the Enter-Growth programme. The findings provided empirical evidence on programme practices that support (and that undermine) sustainable outcomes, as well as on the importance, value and feasibility of long-term sustainability assessments of systemic change programmes.
Evaluation of WASH systems change intervention strategy
LIEN Aid, Myanmar
Lien AID is an innovative WASH-sector focused foundation based in Singapore supporting governments across South East Asia to provide more effective and sustainable WASH services to disadvantaged rural and urban communities. Lien AID has committed to taking a more systemic approach to its work and has commission Springfield to provide an independent and objective assessment of the extent to which the programme in Myanmar has been able to effectively apply a systems strengthening strategy to its work in the Ayeyarwady region. The consultancy has included an audit of how Lien AID has applied the systems approach, frameworks and tools exploring the processes and practices being employed to facilitate improved technology, advocacy and finance in the Myanmar water sector.
A second phase of support, planned for later in 2021/2022, will comprise an evaluation of Lien AID’s performance and lessons learned in Myanmar toward catalysing sustained access to clean water and sanitation.
3i – Investing in Infrastructure
DFAT, Cambodia
Investing in Infrastructure (3i) is a 5-year, Australian-funded programme working in the rural water and electricity markets in Cambodia. The Springfield Centre researched and developed a case study on 3i‘s programme in the rural Cambodian water and electricity infrastructure markets. The learning case documents the innovative use of a public subsidy tactic – viability gap finance – to unlock private investment for water and electric services. The case study documented the progress to date and has been shared with sector practitioners and donors.
ALCP – Alliances Caucuses Programme
Mercy Corps, Georgia
The Alliances Caucuses Programme (ALCP) in Georgia was established to increase incomes and employment for small-scale livestock and honey producers (LHPs) in rural Georgia by developing the agricultural markets they participate in. In the early stages of the programme, the ALCP found that a lack of access to reliable and relevant agricultural information was negatively impacting rural farmers and beekeepers’ participation in agricultural markets, leaving them disadvantaged in negotiations with informal traders and largely excluded from formal markets. The ALCP identified a demand for agricultural media content among LHPs but decided that instead of sponsoring agricultural content to address information constraints – an unsustainable, though common, solution – they would try to change the way media works. Springfield were engaged to write a case study on the achievements and lessons learned from this programme.
HEKS/EPER
HEKS, Moldova
HEKS/EPER strategic drive in Moldova aims to address the disparities and inequalities in development of urban and rural areas. The Springfield Centre was mandated to review two of its three programmes related to income and employment generation, both following a market systems development approach.
The objective of the evaluation was twofold: to assess programme achievements up to date, and to generate insights and learning for designing the subsequent phase. This included an evaluation of project results against impact and systemic change objectives and a process-oriented analysis of intervention design and implementation in line with MSD good practices and guidelines which allowed to interpret and contextualise the programme achievements. Recommendations provided feedback on how the projects can be strengthened in a subsequent phase. As learning was crucial for both project teams, the assignment culminated with an awareness raising session providing more detail on key MSD process that could be improved going forward.
AgriFin Accelerate (AFA)
MasterCard Foundation / Mercy Corps, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia
AgriFin Accelerate (AFA) is a six-year, USD 24.7-million programme, helping market players to overcome systemic constraints that inhibit the functioning of the innovation market for digital financial and information services (DFS and DIS).
Genesis and The Springfield Centre were contracted to conduct the mid-term evaluation of AFA. The Genesis-Springfield team applied a market-systems development lens to the evaluation, and aimed to embed the core principles of the approach, including scale, sustainability and market facilitation. The evaluation was both backward and forward-looking, assessing the performance of the project to date, while also providing recommendations based on the findings to inform future strategy. The forward-looking component specifically considered the intended shift in the latter half of the project from building institution-focused engagements to achieving scale and catalysing ecosystem change.
The collaborative approach to the evaluation included theory of change and validation workshops with the AFA team and MasterCard Foundation. This helped map a pathway to consolidation of programme activities and a greater focus on learning and knowledge dissemination, guiding the team to have a greater system-wide influence in the agricultural finance sector.
KMT Water Strategy, Review and Refresh
Kenya Markets Trust (KMT), Kenya
Water is one of three sectors that KMT facilitates systemic change in. Evolving market conditions and institutional capacities merited a review and updated strategy. Springfield led an internal team at KMT to review the current strategy, update market intelligence through key informant interviews, and develop a revised strategy to guide the programme for the next five years. The strategy is being used to guide KMT’s water interventions for the next five years.
Katalyst
DFID/SDC/SIDA/DANIDA, Bangladesh
In addition to technical and thematic support to Katalyst provided by Springfield across many years, Springfield have also been contracted by the implementers of the programme to conduct reviews and extract learning. Most recently, a synthesis of three sectoral case studies examined how Katalyst had contributed to systemic change in three sectors of the economy with mulitple complimentary interventions across a decade.
AIP-R – Australia Indonesia Partnership-Rural
DFAT, Indonesia
DFAT commissioned the AIP-R to promote economic development in eastern Indonesia and focuses on agricultural market development, including irrigation, agricultural innovation and value chain finance.
Springfield is part of a Strategic Review Panel that monitors overall portfolio balance and performance and advises the programme’s funders and management on strategic direction.
Springfield also contributed to the writing of the AIP-Rural Learning Series which highlights the success stories, lessons learned, and best practices of the program in achieving its objectives.
Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR) – Assessment
Multi-donor, Rwanda
AFA wanted to understand the kind of impact its interventions had on the target group, its sector partners and the financial sector as a hole to learn for future programming. To initiate this learning process, Springfield together with its partner Genesis Analytics conducted an impact assessment of selected AFA projects. The assessment focussed on a qualitative assessment of impacts through in-depth interviews and focus group discussion but included quantitative measures to triangulate findings.
PIND – Partnership Initiatives for the Niger Delta, Review
NDPI, Nigeria
PIND and NDPI commissioned Springfield to conduct a rapid review of their current strategy and portfolio in order to assess the appropriateness and quality of the WASH interventions undertaken through a market systems lens and identify potential next steps in order to improve current and future programming to achieve sustainable and scalable change.
TMEA – Trade Mark East Africa – Assessment
DFID, East Africa
Springfield undertook a detailed institutional and organisational assessment of TMEA. The programme provides trade facilitation (assistance and funding) for the east African Council and the governments of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan. The assignment assessed the effectiveness of the institutional governance structure and the efficiency and effectiveness of the organisation structure and support systems including value for money, alternative commercial models, knowledge management and wider learning opportunities.
Vocational Education Systems Intervention
SDC, Serbia
As part of its backstopping support, Springfield researched and co-authored a study of the innovative work of SDC’s private sector development programme in driving private-sector led vocational education reform. The study explores changes in the system of curricula reform and efforts to scale the reform agenda nation-wide.
Tanzania Textiles Development Programme
Gatsby Africa/DFID, Tanzania
Springfield has provided advice and support to the TTDP implementing team, the Textiles Development Unit over multiple years. We have provided specific advice on upscaling and transition management, including staffing models, management systems and processes and skills required to support sector transformation through influencing and shaping policy and through strengthening supporting institutions.
CSDP – Cotton Sector Development Programme
Gatsby Africa/DFID, Tanzania
Over three years Springfield have undertaken annual reviews of CSDP. In particular, we have advised on progress, performance, plans, outcomes, impact (scale) and sustainability in: contract farming for private cotton ginning companies; institutional support capacities, quality seed supply and agronomy; and farmer support structures and services including franchising models and the introduction of innovations such as minimum tillage systems to increase crop yields.
FSDA – Financial Sector Deepening Africa
DFID, Africa
FSDA is a financial sector deepening (FSD) trust whose core purpose is to support initiatives to expand access to financial services for the poor. Inputs have included reviews of experience of FSDs in Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and South Africa, to produce a series of case studies. Also acted as an adviser to support FSDA design and deliver an M4P training course that is intended to help build the capacity of FSD staff to enable them to implement their work more effectively and thereby achieve greater impact, as well inform the design of other knowledge sharing and skills development activities.
LIFT – Land Investment For Transformation
DFID, Ethiopia
Springfield have supported recurrent annual reviews of the Land Investment For Transformation (LIFT) programme, with a focus on the economic empowerment component. These reviews have assessed and provided recommendations for strengthening the strategic and tactical performance of LIFT and its application of the market systems lens.
SanMarkS Programme in Bangladesh, Review
SDC, Bangladesh
Sanitation Marketing Systems is a four-year programme funded by SDC and UNICEF aimed at improving the rural sanitation market system in Bangladesh. Springfield were commissioned to undertake the midterm evaluation, reviewing the innovative market‐based sanitation programme in six districts of Bangladesh. The review blends market system evaluation criteria, as well as the DAC criteria, and provides both an analysis of progress to date and recommendations for future work. The review was presented to SDC and has informed strategic direction for a potential second phase of the programme.
RAIN – Revitalising Agricultural Incomes and New Markets
Mercy Corps, Ethiopia
Springfield led a review and lesson harvesting of RAIN’s experience in the animal health inputs sector in the Somali region. The Case explored the benefits and challenges of adopting and operationalising a market systems approach and identified lessons for programme and more widely with regards to the application of MSD in fragile, post-relief contexts.
LEAD – Livelihood Enhancement through Agriculture Development
DFID, Tanzania
Springfield provided support to DFID to appraise a proposal from BRAC Tanzania. The consultancy explored how the programme design might be adapted to better respond to a robust and effective market systems-oriented approach. The review findings supported a range of recommendations for strengthening the analytical basis of the proposal and the project design and planning process, and addressed weaknesses in the intervention strategy proposed by BRAC.
Enhancing Youth Employment (EYE) Project
SDC, Kosovo
Springfield led an internal evaluation of the EYE programme, culminating in a case study of the project’s intervention in job matching services. The case assessed EYE’s intervention rationale, the performance of project facilitation and its subsequent impact at different levels of the ‘results chain’.
BIF – Business Innovation Facility
DFID, Multi-country
DFID invited Springfield to undertake a strategic review of the Business Innovation Facility (BIF) and its performance against its transformational mandate in Malawi, Bangladesh, India, Zambia and Nigeria. The review assessed the BIF theory of change and its alignment with activities on-the-ground, made recommendations for the design of phase 2, and supported BIF2 inception in Myanmar and Malawi.
FDT – Forestry Development Trust
Gatsby Africa/DFID, Tanzania
The Springfield Centre has been engaged by DFID to conduct annual reviews of the Forestry Development Trust programme implemented by Gatsby Africa for a number of years. The programme aims to develop asset values and income from forestry for poor people in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania. Springfield have provide a critical analysis which has proven helpful to both DFID and the programme to improve outcomes over time.
DIAL – Digital Impact Alliance
UN Foundation /SIDA/USAID/Gates Foundation, Global
Springfield have been engaged by the United Nations Foundation, which houses the Digital Impact Alliance, to conduct a baseline assessment to lay the foundations for an assessment of how the organisation created systemic change in the digital ecosystem. DIAL’s mission is to increase the access and quality of digital goods and services to underserved people globally.
EELA – Energy Efficiency in Small Brick Enterprises, Review
SDC, Latin America
EELA is the first programme to apply M4P principles in the climate change. The programme worked with technology providers, financial institutions, and government authorities to encourage the adoption of more energy efficient brick firing technologies.
The review included both an assessment of general DAC criteria, as well as an assessment of the market systems changes facilitated by the programme.