Impact Assessment and Evaluations
Alliance for Socially Engaged Arts: Learning Partner
New Silk Roads is currently the learning partner for the Alliance for Socially Engaged Arts, a philanthropic collaborative programme that champions the power of socially engaged arts in driving positive social change across Europe. The Alliance is currently in its pilot phase, and includes a fellowship bringing together 15 socially engaged arts leaders alongside a range of advocacy activities.
Beginning with the development of a learning framework for the programme, we are conducting an evaluation of the pilot phase that will drive sustainable learning in future cycles of the programme.
Strengthening Youth Employability in the ICT Sector
ReBootKamp (RBK) is Tunisia’s first immersive coding bootcamp which trains young people to become employment-ready software engineers.
Under the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment, New Silk Roads supported RBK to scale its operations nationally across Tunisia while further professionalising its operations and services.
We specifically worked with RBK to strengthen its curriculum offerings in an increasingly global hiring market. We provided strategic assessments and guidance for gender inclusion, resulting in increased retention and graduation of young women. Finally, we implemented a monitoring, evaluation, and learning framework to track training effectiveness and job placements to boost RBK’s competitiveness.
Impact Investing Feasibility Study in Ethiopia
New Silk Roads conducted a multi-dimensional feasibility study on establishing an impact investment fund within Ethiopia’s emerging capital market. This study utilised extensive desk research, secondary source analysis, and key informant interviews with key regulators and financial institutions to analyse the "missing middle" financing gap.
To validate this initial assessment, we hosted a two-day workshop in Addis Ababa with key stakeholders. Based on this workshop, we are currently structuring a blended finance model that includes local-currency deployment, offshore de-risking, and a technical assistance facility. Our team is also providing support to secure catalytic capital and donors to launch this first-of-its-kind vehicle for growth-stage SMEs in Ethiopia.
Inclusive Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Assessment
New Silk Roads conducted an assessment of Tripoli’s entrepreneurship landscape, with a focus on identifying sustainable and systemic opportunities to strengthen the ecosystem for marginalised groups. Our team used a mixed methods approach composed of surveys, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions.
Our approach was rooted in ILO's Inclusive Entrepreneurship Framework and the Isenberg Model, which organises the entrepreneurial environment into six interconnected pillars: human capital, policy and regulation, access to finance, culture and social norms, support services and infrastructure, and market access. Our study also integrated three cross-cutting dimensions: gender and social inclusion, conflict sensitivity, and environmental sensitivity.
Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator Project (GGJAP)
The GGJAP is a four-year regional project focused on accelerating SMEs to grow sustainably and create decent jobs for young people. We provided technical fundraising support to the Flat6Labs accelerator to prepare the $3.5 million tender and secure their first multi-year, regional programme.
As part of the GGJAP consortium, New Silk Roads is also assisting with the accelerator design and positioning, monitoring and evaluation frameworks, and internal team upskilling. Additionally, our team is developing a specialised e-learning curriculum, which features multi-lingual digital courses on business innovation, impact measurement, and access to finance, specifically designed for SMEs in the Arab states region.
Impact Assessment for Hivos Job Creation Programs
The New Silk Roads M&E team has provided Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) support to several Hivos programmes focused on youth employment, entrepreneurship development, and the green transition in the MENA region. For example, our team led the evaluation of the GreenWorks program, including a through desk review, key informant interviews, and over 400 online and CATI surveys. We also measured the number of direct jobs created and supported by the Hivos GreenWorks project in Algeria, Egypt, and Tunisia. Furthermore, we conducted an internal md-term evaluation of the LEAD Coworking for Sustainable Employment Programme following the OECD-DAC criteria. Finally, we provided training to various organisations in MENA to set up their own MEL frameworks and support with data collection.