Internal monitoring and collaborative evaluations, that involved field visits, workshops and regular interactions between GDN, the Scientific and Technical Advisors and the teams, suggest that the most significant impact of the pilot was to revive, improve and develop local research training opportunities previously dormant or considered ‘risky’ investments.
The pilot triggered the reallocation of institutional resources to support more local research training opportunities, impacted the research culture by expanding in the region (Vietnam-Cambodia), changing the institutional incentives for academic research in higher education (Bhutan) and including primary data collection and analysis within postgraduate studies (Ethiopia). All three teams secured financial resources and a clear mandate to support and expand their projects before the end of GDN funding, enabling each team to showcase the value of their ideas and approach to research capacity building.
