Participatory evaluation of farmer organizations' capacity for development tasks

Two problems can arise when attempting to evaluate the organizational capacity of farmer organizations expected to contribute to agricultural and rural development. First, organizations' capacity is very difficult to assess, as it represents potential rather than just performance. Indirect measures are needed for estimating this important variable in agricultural administration. Second, most approaches to evaluation are themselves ‘top-down’ and thus inconsistent with the capacity they are supposed to assess. Ideally, one would have a system of evaluation that itself supports the value and process of ‘participation’ in development activities. This article presents a methodology initiated with irrigation user groups in Sri Lanka that tackles both these problems.