Independent evaluation of the
Prosperity Fund

Around 60 per cent of the world’s poor live in middle-income countries – which are also expected to account for 60 per cent of global growth by 2030.

Many of these countries – including India, China, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa – still face considerable challenges in their development. Factors such as rapid urbanisation, climate change and high and persistent inequality (including gender inequality) all have impact on these countries that can lower long-term growth prospects.

The Prosperity Fund was a £1.2 billion UK cross-government fund that aimed to break down these development challenges and barriers to growth. The fund supported vital economic development and reform in these countries, helping them to build well-regulated, competitive markets, and making them valuable trading partners of the future.

Evaluation on a global scale

We led the evaluation and learning component of the Fund, covering 24 programmes spanning 153 projects in 20 countries. We had more 120 evaluation experts advising UK government departments and Embassies on how to increase impact, sustainability and value for money on the biggest evaluation contract let by the UK government to date.

We helped the UK government to understand the performance of the Fund by investigating performance in key areas across the portfolio. This included considering how the Fund helps address poverty alleviation, generate opportunities for business, meet UK aims in gender and inclusion, and generate value for money.

We supported the effective management of the Fund, enabled adaptive management, documented and shared learning and helped build the evidence base on Mutual Prosperity. Our work also fostered effective cross HMG working, and unpicked how UK taxpayer funds could be used to alleviate poverty while generating benefits to the UK taxpayer.

Our evaluation over a four-year period helped ensure scrutiny of UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) in countries such as India, China, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa.

Evaluating across sectors

Tetra Tech provided top class evaluation experts with knowledge in the wide range of sectors and industries covered by the Prosperity Fund, including infrastructure, urban development, improving access to digital technologies, innovation and knowledge transfer, workforce skills, trade, financial services, economic reform, business environment reform and anti-corruption measures.

In addition to independent evaluation, we offered technical evaluation and learning advice to staff from UK Embassies, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Department for Trade (DIT).

We generated a wide range of learning material, including blogs, reflection pieces, videos and online training material. Through a curated online learning and knowledge sharing platform and facilitation of online learning events, we helped build skills and knowledge to deliver overseas development assistance, and promoted a culture of learning across the Fund.
You can see some of our work and learn more about the Prosperity Fund here.

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