Since 2008, South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has made a concerted effort to enhance its systems for using evidence to inform how it diagnoses, develops, implements and reports on policy. This report synthesises the organisational issues that influence these interactions. It is based on the findings of five studies that were conducted as part of a programme of support to DEA between 2014 and 2016. Many examples of good practice were unearthed in the studies – examples that deserve to be shared more widely. The report also identifies areas that were observed to be limiting DEA’s ability to make better use of its evidence.

This is the second in a series of documents that have been developed as part of the VakaYiko Consortium project, supporting DEA in South Africa as it embeds and enhances an evidence-informed approach to policy-making. It has been jointly produced by a team from DEA and from ODI.

Report by the Overseas Development Institute