Country-Led Participatory Evaluation by Ecuador

This initiative – realised by DEval’s Evaluation Capacity Development project Focelac+ - aimed to evaluate the Socialization and Encounter Spaces (ESE) service which is offered by the Ministry of Economy and Social Inclusion (MIES) of Ecuador. Its purpose is to facilitate meetings, socialization and recreation for older adults; promote coexistence, participation, solidarity, relationships with families and the community, as well as to have an impact on positive and healthy aging.

For this purpose, a multi-stakeholder team was formed, composed of the SNP, the MIES, representatives of the beneficiary population, academia, and other civil society actors. This multi-stakeholder team was facilitated by evaluation experts who accompanied the process, provided technical guidance and capacity building.

Main Conclusions

The evaluation resulted in the following main conclusions:

1. Comprehensive care for the elderly population requires a multidisciplinary team that covers the three areas of care: inclusion and social participation; social protection; and attention and care. Currently, the capacity to address the three areas of attention is insufficient.
2. The service seems to be reaching more people who do not comply with the established poverty criteria, which suggests a possible misalignment between the target population and the actual beneficiaries of the service.
3. The evaluation confirms that older adults attending ESE experience significant improvements in their physical and mental well-being. This positive impact is largely due to the work and the different functions performed by the facilitators.

It is fair to say that the participation of the elderly users, together with the executors, related entities, academia and other key actors, allowed the results and recommendations to be more relevant and applicable to the real needs of the beneficiary population. "After more than a year and a half we are completing an assesment that will undoubtedly impact the lives of so many people", said Joselyn Corrales, Undersecretary of Evaluation at the National Planning Secretariat of Ecuador.