Blogging at IE Matters Conference

Blogging and preparing for the IE Matters Conference at the Holiday Inn Galleria Manila

When my PhD classmate and good friend, Dr. Nelson Faustino took me in as data analysis consultant for the evaluation of the School Electrification and Education (SEEd) Project of the Alliance for Mindanao Off Grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) Program funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which at the same time is the centerpiece of his PhD dissertation, I immediately took the offer. Aside from our long standing professional collaboration in several projects of the past which I believe makes our team up becoming as effective every time, I think this would be an opportunity for me to develop my skills in impact evaluation and hopefully provide several opportunities for my academic career.

A landmark of the SEEd-AMORE Program in Marilog, Davao City

True enough, about two years later today I am here at Holiday Inn Manila Galleria for the “Making Impact Evaluation Matter: Better Evidence for Effective Policies and Program”, a conference for impact evaluation at the Asian Development Bank Headquarters in Ortigas, Metro Manila. Our impact evaluation study of SEEd-AMORE found its way through for presentation. This is organized by Asian Development Bank (ADB), International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), and Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).

It’s a dream come true to have the opportunity to meet with impact evaluation professionals from around the world. Furthermore, it makes me proud to be a part of the goals of impact evaluation by providing evidence for development programs necessary for creating better policies and programs for society.

I’ll try my hand at live blogging this time to give you updates as the conference starts at 1:00 PM today.

A glimpse of the ADB Headquarters (building on the left) from my hotel room.