Across the Global South, a paradox is unfolding, young evaluators are more qualified than ever, yet many remain locked out of leadership and decision-making spaces.
A growing number of emerging evaluators are highly trained, technically competent, and increasingly experienced. They contribute meaningfully to complex evaluations, often in central sectors to sustainable development such as public health, agriculture, and climate resilience. Yet, many continue to have limited influence over priorities, methods, and decision-making processes.
This is not a capacity problem. It is a systems problem.
Recent discussions within the evaluation community, including the Youth in Evaluation Forum (2026) and the webinar "Beyond Degrees: Rethinking Careers and Professionalization in Evaluation" (2026), have highlighted a recurring concern: structural barriers, rather than individual capability, often constraint to their advancement.
Rethinking “Skills Gap” Narrative
For years, efforts to strengthen evaluation have focused on building capacity through degrees, training programs, and certifications. These investments remain important, but they do not fully explain why many qualified young evaluators continue to struggle to advance.
Many emerging evaluators hold advanced degrees, apply mixed methods, and contribute to complex, multi-sectoral evaluations. Yet they remain underrepresented in leadership and decision-making spaces.
This suggests that the challenge may lie not only in developing skills, but also in how opportunities are structured and accessed within the profession.
Invisible Barriers Within the Evaluation Ecosystem
The lived experiences of young evaluators reveal a consistent set of structural constraints:
Experience-based gatekeeping
Recruitment and procurement systems often prioritize years of experience over demonstrated competence. This creates a familiar paradox: young evaluators cannot gain experience without opportunities, yet cannot access opportunities without prior experience.
Fragmented career pathways
Unlike more established professions, evaluation often lacks clear and defined progression pathways. Many young professionals remain in entry-level or support roles with limited clarity on how to move into more senior responsibilities.
Over-reliance on credentials
Degrees and certifications are often treated as primary indicators of competence, even though much evaluation expertise is largely built through practice.
Limited mentorship and sponsorship
Access to training has expanded, but structured mentorship and sponsorship opportunities remain limited. Without them, young evaluators often struggle to build professional networks, gain visibility, and access leadership pathways.
The “assistant trap”
Many systems absorb young professionals as data collectors or research assistants but do not invest in transitioning them into designers, leaders, or decision-makers. In many evaluation projects, young professionals are routinely engaged in data collection roles, yet are rarely included in study design, methodological decision-making, or client-facing discussions. As a result, opportunities to develop leadership skills and shape evaluation processes remain limited.
These challenges reflect how the evaluation profession is structured, shaping who progresses and whose perspectives are valued.
Why This Matters for Sustainable Development
When capable young evaluators are excluded from leadership and agenda-setting spaces, the field risks losing critical perspectives particularly those that are locally grounded, context-aware, and future-oriented. The result is a growing disconnect between the capabilities available within the profession and the opportunities available to apply them.
In a rapidly changing world, evaluation systems must evolve not just to generate evidence, but to ensure that evidence reflects diverse voices and lived realities. For organizations working on food, land, and water systems, this is especially important. Evaluation must be able to reflect the realities of communities facing climate stress, food insecurity, and environmental change. Strengthening pathways for young evaluators is therefore not only a professional development issue; it is part of building evaluation systems that are more locally grounded, adaptive, and relevant to sustainable development.
From Participation to Power
There has been notable progress in expanding youth participation in evaluation. Platforms such as EvalYouth and regional evaluation networks have opened access to conferences, learning spaces, and field experience.
In many cases, however, youth inclusion remains superficial. Young evaluators collect data but do not define research questions. They attend forums but do not shape agendas.
Moving beyond symbolic inclusion requires creating opportunities for young evaluators to:
- Lead evaluation activities and workstreams
- Contribute to methodological design and decision-making
- Position them to influence evaluation priorities and
A Systems Challenge Not a Talent Problem
Addressing these challenges requires more than expanding access to training. It also requires changes in how careers are structured, how expertise is recognized, and how leadership opportunities are distributed.
Ultimately, the challenge is not simply one of capacity. While training remains important, it cannot by itself address the institutional and structural barriers that shape who gain experience, visibility, and leadership opportunities within the profession.
Young evaluators are already contributing to the profession. The question is how quickly the profession adapts to make better use of that talent.