Open procedure for the award of the service contract Accompanying evaluation for the European Social Fund Plus in the Free State of Saxony for the funding period 2021-2027, Lot 1: Evaluation period 2023-2026

The European Union is required to carry out evaluations to improve the quality of the implementation of the ESF Plus programme of the Free State of Saxony and to evaluate them on the basis of one or more of the following criteria: effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and Union added value and their impact (Article 44(1) of Regulation (EU) No 2021/1060). The evaluations are to be carried out by functionally independent experts (Article 44 paragraph 3 of Regulation (EU) No 2021/1060).

The Managing Authority for the European Social Fund in the Saxon State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Transport (SMWA) intends to award the accompanying evaluation for the European Social Fund Plus (funding period 2021-2027).

The accompanying evaluation of the ESF Plus programme will be awarded in three lots over the entire eligibility period.

Lot 1 to be awarded here covers the evaluation period 2023 to 2026 and includes:

- an implementation evaluation (Part A),

- an evaluation of coherence (Part B),

- two impact evaluations (Part C),

- the first evaluation of the ESF Plus programme (Part D),

- the preparation of the mid-term review report (Part E), and

- Technical evaluation questions on Part C Impact evaluations.

Three event-related evaluations (Lot 2) and, at the end of the eligibility period, a further evaluation of the ESF Plus programme in 2028 (Lot 3) will be awarded at a later date.