Cese Advocates for Improved Evaluation Frameworks for Environmental Policies in France
Cese stresses the need for structured evaluation frameworks to enhance environmental policy effectiveness in France.
Key Points
- • Cese highlights lack of evaluation in environmental policies.
- • Call for integration of evaluation methods from policy inception.
- • Proposed three-phase evaluation framework to improve accountability.
- • Cese urges cultural shift in policymaking to embrace evaluation.
The Conseil économique, social et environnemental (Cese) has raised significant concerns regarding the inadequate evaluation of environmental public policies in France, emphasizing a pressing need for structured and culturally integrated assessment frameworks. Cese president Thierry Beaudet pointed out that the absence of reliable data is severely impeding effective decision-making, resulting in policies that fail to meet their objectives.
In a recent session, Cese members highlighted the troubling revelation that past policies, such as the second national biodiversity strategy (2011-2020), could not be evaluated. Sylvain Boucherand, head of Cese's Environment Commission, expressed frustration over this lack of assessment, questioning the ability to shape future policies without understanding past outcomes.
Cese proposes a paradigm shift towards establishing a robust culture of evaluation within policymaking. This would involve integrating evaluation methods from the policy development stage, including setting clear objectives and indicators. Catherine Guerniou, co-rapporteur of the advisory opinion, emphasized the importance of anticipating evaluation needs early to mitigate biases and effectively measure socio-economic impacts.
To address these issues, Cese has outlined a structured evaluation framework comprising 'ex ante' assessments before policy implementation, 'in itinere' evaluations during execution, and 'ex post' evaluations to assess final outcomes. The body advocates for a national platform to centralize evaluations of environmental policies and suggests that mandatory evaluations should be in place for national policies with significant budgets.
Furthermore, the Cese is calling for a cultural transformation among policymakers, where evaluations are viewed as constructive tools rather than critiques. This shift is crucial amid ongoing public finance challenges and previous failures in environmental policymaking. The recommendations from Cese are aimed at enhancing transparency and collaboration in environmental governance, fostering more effective policy outcomes moving forward.