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Since 1999, The QED Group has been contracted by the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) to annually evaluate 400 Agency-funded training and technical assistance grants, feasibility studies and conferences to assess these activities’ impacts on U.S. exports, overseas infrastructure development, U.S. foreign policy objectives, and public-private partnerships.
The QED Difference
USTDA's activities aim to promote U.S. private sector involvement in infrastructure projects in a variety of sectors in developing and middle income countries. As USTDA has become increasingly focused on the development impact of its projects in host countries, the Agency has asked QED, currently its only outside evaluator, to help monitor and assess its impact.
QED developed a project design and methodologies to evaluate the economic impact on the export generation rates of U.S. firms, as well as the infrastructure improvement, technology transfer, market-oriented reform and human capacity building benefiting the Agency’s targeted countries. Through interviews with high-level public and private officials in both the U.S. and abroad, statistical analysis, and political and economic research, QED has provided technical direction for the project, performed data collection, and created a database of project information, including the commercial successes and challenges of over 3,000 U.S. firms involved in USTDA programs. QED has developed and continues to test interview questions and reporting methods.
The results of QED's evaluations will be used by the Agency to determine next steps in program evaluation and are reported to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the U.S. Congress. USTDA relied on QED's data for the Agency’s PART review. QED's technical experts have also engaged the Agency in a broader discussion of the role of M&E in planning for, achieving, and measuring the Agency’s impacts.
For more information, contact Jason Rubin, Project Manager at 202.521.1900 or jrubin@qedgroupllc.com.
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