ICED has expanded in geographies, funding partners, type of projects and impact in the six years of its existence and it is at a stage where its leadership is taking a step back to define even more aspirational targets for its next five years. The purpose is to provide a platform for co-creation of robust strategies that align with the acceleration of ICED’s impact in Africa. Furthermore, the advancements over the last six years in the fast paced and dynamic development evaluation landscape make it necessary for ICED to reposition itself in leadership and as a contributor and a key player in that space, to deepen and broaden its impact in Africa.

Although ICED has achieved much and its mission remains relevant, the rapid evolution of the ecosystem in which it operates and its internal factors have contributed to generate gaps in achieving its objectives. It is imperative for ICED to retool itself and refresh its approaches and partnerships in the next phase to remain relevant in dealing with the challenges of the current times, to maximize its critical role in informing and shaping development policies, strategies and initiatives and to attract resources. This it should do whilst upholding diversity, context and cultural sensitivity, leadership localization, accountability and value for money principles.

In developing the 2024-2029 strategy, ICED consulted its Board of Directors, community of partners, key sector experts, thought leaders and its staff. These were the stakeholders considered to be best placed to assist in identifying the growth opportunities, gaps, challenges and lessons for consideration in the development of the new strategy.

To ensure the creation of a comprehensive strategy, a framework highlighting the various critical areas of the organization was generated to serve as a guide. The process involved reviewing ICED documents and policies to understand the status of various components and identify gaps; stakeholder engagement to understand Africa’s landscape and identify the growth opportunities for ICED; board member interviews; a brainstorming workshop for all the key stakeholders; and secondary research and analysis covering reports and datasets to identify the growth trends in various sectors and geographies.