EvalMENA Index 2025 Explore Index →
EvalMENA · First Edition · 11 MENA States · 2025

Evaluation
Institutionalization
in the Arab World

The first systematic, theory-grounded measurement of how deeply evaluation is embedded across political, social, and professional systems in 11 Arab League states. Maximum score: 25.6%.

← 0% ·················································· 100% →
High ≥22% Mid ≥14% Low <14% 0–100% scale · Ben Brik, A. (2025) · Edward Elgar
Explore Full Index → About the Research
Dimension AveragesMENA Mean
Political System
Institutionalization & Use
—
MENA avg
Social System
Societal Dissemination
—
MENA avg
Profession System
Professionalisation
—
MENA avg
Publications · 2025
Elgar monograph
Edward Elgar · Monograph
The Institutionalization of Evaluation in MENA
Anis Ben Brik · 328 pp.
 Bristol UP
Bristol UP · Edited Volume
Public Policy Evaluation in MENA
Ed. Anis Ben Brik
Dr Anis Ben Brik
Principal Investigator
Dr. Anis Ben Brik
USI Switzerland · UC Berkeley
Chair, MENA Evaluation Assoc.
—
MENA Countries
Assessed
—
Highest Score
(Morocco)
—
Index
Dimensions
—
Sub-Indicators
Measured
0%
Countries with
National Eval. Laws
Principal Investigator
Dr Anis Ben Brik
Dr. Anis Ben Brik
Founder · EvalMENA Index · USI Switzerland
Principal Investigator & Founder · EvalMENA Index

Associate Professor, Faculty of Communication, Culture & Society, USI Switzerland. Visiting Professor, UC Berkeley. Chair, MENA Evaluation Association. Dr. Ben Brik is the leading scholarly authority on evaluation institutionalization in the Arab world — combining comparative politics, digital governance, and Middle Eastern studies to produce the first multi-method comparative study of evaluation frameworks across Arab League member states.

USI Switzerland UC Berkeley MENA Evaluation Association Stockmann et al. 2022
Research Context

Governance & Evaluation
in the Arab World

No country has national evaluation laws. The highest composite score is 25.6%. These findings reveal the early, uneven stage of evaluation institutionalization across the MENA region — and the scale of the opportunity for reform.

About the Project

Purpose, Framework
& Scholarly Context

What is the EvalMENA Index?

The EvalMENA Index is the first systematic, quantitative index of evaluation institutionalization for the Arab world. It measures, scores, and compares how deeply public policy evaluation is embedded in the legal, organizational, social, and professional fabric of 11 Arab League states — providing researchers, policymakers, and practitioners with the first evidence base of its kind for MENA.

Building on the Evaluation GLOBE

EvalMENA is directly grounded in the Evaluation GLOBE research project (Stockmann, Meyer & Taube; Saarland University / CEval), the first global systematic study of evaluation institutionalization across all world regions. The Evaluation GLOBE developed a theoretically grounded three-system analytical framework — drawing on modernization theory and institutional sociology — covering the Political System, the Social System, and the System of Professionalization. This framework was refined across four continental volumes (Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa) and validated with evaluation experts worldwide.

EvalMENA applies and extends this framework to the MENA region for the first time, adapting it to the specific governance, administrative, and cultural contexts of Arab League states. While Evaluation GLOBE volumes were largely qualitative case-study collections, EvalMENA produces a fully quantified, scored comparative index — enabling cross-country ranking, gap analysis, and time-series potential.

Why MENA? Why Now?

Despite massive public investment and active international development cooperation, evaluation remains institutionally fragile across the Middle East and North Africa. No existing global index covers MENA systematically. International organizations — the World Bank, UNDP, OECD — lack the regional granularity needed to guide evaluation capacity-building. EvalMENA fills this gap with rigorous, replicable data.

Analytical Framework
Based on Stockmann, Meyer & Taube (2020) · Evaluation GLOBE · Saarland University / CEval
Dimension 1
Political System
Institutional structures and processes: national laws, parliamentary audit capacity, organisational embedding, scope of evaluation practice
Dimension 2
Social System
Societal dissemination and acceptance: civil society use, public knowledge, media discourse, report availability, civic demand
Dimension 3
Professionalization System
Academic education, professional communication platforms, VOPE organisation maturity, professional standards and norms
Reference: Stockmann, R., Meyer, W. & Taube, L. (Eds.) (2020). The Institutionalization of Evaluation in Asia-Pacific. Palgrave Macmillan. | evaluation-globe.com
EvalMENA Contribution
01
First MENA Index
No prior systematic scored index exists for any Arab League state
02
Quantified Scoring
14 indicators scored 0–1, aggregated into 3 dimension means and one composite index
03
Regional Adaptation
Framework adapted for MENA governance structures, Arab legal traditions, and regional VOPE landscape
04
Open Science
Scores, methodology, and country profiles fully published in two peer-reviewed volumes
"No country in the Arab world has passed comprehensive national evaluation legislation. The EvalMENA Index is the first evidence-based measurement of how far each state has progressed — and how far it still has to go."
Ben Brik, A. (2025) · The Institutionalization of Evaluation in MENA · Edward Elgar Publishing · DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Finding 01
No National Evaluation Laws
No country in this dataset has passed comprehensive national evaluation legislation. Policy documents reference evaluation without the institutional infrastructure required to carry it out.
Finding 02
Maximum Score: 25.6%
Morocco leads all 11 states at 25.6%. The MENA regional average is only 16.6%. These figures underscore the early, fragile stage of evaluation institutionalization across the Arab world.
Finding 03
Political Leads Social
Political dimension scores consistently outpace social and profession scores — evaluation exists more in formal policy documents than in civic practice or professional culture.
01
Political System
7 sub-indicators
1A · Institutionalisation
National laws & strategies
National decrees
Organisational embedding
Role of court of auditors
1B · Use of Evaluation
Parliamentary capacity
Sectoral spread
Scope of evaluation
02
Social System
5 sub-indicators
2A · Societal Dissemination
General use in civil society
Public knowledge
Media & public discussion
Availability of reports
Civic demand for evaluation
03
Profession System
4 sub-indicators
3A · Professionalisation
Education: study programmes
Communication: professional exchange
Organisation: VOPE maturity
Norms: professional standards
Index Results · Score.xlsx · Verified

Complete Data
by Dimension

All values verified cell-by-cell from Score.xlsx. All charts at 0–100% scale. Maximum: Morocco 25.6%. Every chart animates on scroll.

Evaluation Index — All 11 Countries Ranked
0–100% scale · Indigo ≥22% · Amber ≥14% · Gray <14%
≥22%
≥14%
<14%
Source: Ben Brik, A. (2025). The Institutionalization of Evaluation in the Middle East and North Africa. Edward Elgar Publishing. DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Three-Dimension Comparison — All 11 Countries
Political / Social / Profession · side-by-side · 0–100%
Ben Brik, A. (2025). EvalMENA Index. Edward Elgar. DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Three-Dimension Radar — All 11 Countries
Political / Social / Profession · 0–100% axes
Ben Brik, A. (2025). EvalMENA Index. Edward Elgar. DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Dimension 1 Political System 1A: Institutionalisation (4 indicators) · 1B: Use of Evaluation (3 indicators) —
Sub-Dimension 1A
Institutionalisation of Evaluation
Laws, decrees, organisational units, court of auditors · 0–100%
Sub-dim 1A mean
Sub-Dimension 1B
Use of Evaluation
Parliamentary capacity, sectoral spread, scope · 0–100%
Sub-dim 1B mean
Political System — Overall Score (0–100%)
Ben Brik, A. (2025). Edward Elgar.
Dimension 2 Social System 2A: Societal Dissemination & Acceptance — 5 indicators · 0–100% —
Sub-Dimension 2A
Societal Dissemination & Acceptance
Civil society, knowledge, media, reports, civic demand
Social System — Overall Score (0–100%)
Ben Brik, A. (2025). Edward Elgar.
Dimension 3 Profession System 3A: Professionalisation — 4 indicators · 0–100% —
Sub-Dimension 3A
Professionalisation of Evaluation
Study programmes, professional exchange, VOPE maturity, professional norms
Profession System — Overall Score (0–100%)
Ben Brik, A. (2025). Edward Elgar.
Full Heatmap — 11 Countries × 14 Sub-Indicators
Indigo=100% · Sage=75% · Amber=50% · Clay=25% · Parchment=0% · Hover for value
100%
75%
50%
25%
0%
Source: Ben Brik, A. (2025). The Institutionalization of Evaluation in MENA. Edward Elgar. DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Stacked Dimension Scores (0–100%)
Indigo=Political · Amber=Social · Sage=Profession · sorted by composite
Ben Brik, A. (2025). EvalMENA Index. Edward Elgar.
Political–Social Gap (percentage points)
Indigo = Political leads Social · Sage = Social leads · sorted by gap
Ben Brik, A. (2025). EvalMENA Index. Edward Elgar.
Publications · 2025

Two Flagship
Research Outputs

Both published in 2025 by leading academic publishers.

Elgar monograph
Edward Elgar Publishing · Monograph · 2025
The Institutionalization of Evaluation in the Middle East and North Africa
Anis Ben Brik
ISBN 978-1-03535-981-3 · eISBN 978-1-03535-982-0 · 328 pp.
DOI: 10.4337/9781035359820
Access on Elgaronline ↗
Chapters
IntroTheory, framework, methods & context
Ch.2–7Gulf States: Qatar · Saudi Arabia · UAE · Oman · Kuwait · Bahrain
Ch.8–9Levant: Jordan · Palestine
Ch.10–12North Africa: Morocco · Tunisia · Egypt
Synth.Synthesis: MENA Institutionalization
Bristol UP edited volume
Bristol University Press · Edited Volume · September 2025
Public Policy Evaluation in the Middle East and North Africa
Edited by Anis Ben Brik, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
ISBN 978-1-4473-7570-8
DOI: 10.46692/9781447375708
Access on Cambridge Core ↗
Chapters
Ch.1–2Politics and context · Progress and challenges
Ch.3National evaluation policies: Gulf — Anis Ben Brik
Ch.4–8Country studies: Jordan · Yemen · Egypt · Morocco · Tunisia
Ch.9–10Capacity development · Future of evaluation in MENA
Stakeholders & Impact

Who Benefits
from the Index

01
Policymakers
Targeted Investment
Sub-dimension scores pinpoint exactly where legal, structural, or social gaps exist — enabling precise investments in evaluation capacity.
02
Practitioners
Regional Benchmarks
Comparative data gives evaluation professionals actionable benchmarks to measure their work against MENA peers.
03
Researchers
Rich Dataset
14 sub-indicators across 11 countries enables academic work on evaluation, governance, and institutional development.
04
Civil Society
Evidence for Advocacy
Social and profession scores identify precisely where VOPE development and civic engagement are most urgently needed.
Project Team

The People Behind
the Index

01
Principal Investigator
Dr. Anis Ben Brik
Professor & Chair, MENA Evaluation Association · USI Switzerland · UC Berkeley
02
Advisor
Prof. Mohamed El Fouly
Senior Advisor · Evaluation Policy & Governance
03
Advisor
Mr. Ziad Moussa
Advisor · Evaluation Practice & VOPEs Network
04
Advisor
Mr. Rachid Essedik
Advisor · North Africa Regional Evaluation
05
Research Associate
Hala Al Attar
Index Development & Data Collection
06
Research Assistant
Hessa Albadr
Data Analysis & Country Profiles
Get In Touch

Let's Work
Together

We welcome collaboration with researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and civil society organizations advancing evaluation science in MENA.

Principal Investigator
Dr. Anis Ben Brik
anis.ben.brik@usi.ch
Affiliation
USI Switzerland · UC Berkeley
Chair, MENA Evaluation Association
Publications
Elgaronline ↗  ·  Cambridge Core ↗