Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning Innovations Program (MERLIN) is a USAID endeavor initiated by the U.S. Global Development Lab in partnership with the Bureau for Policy, Planning and Learning (PPL), and the Bureau for Global Health. MERLIN is a fundamentally different approach to program design for USAID and its partners that motivates users to source, co-create, and co-design development solutions while innovating and iterating on traditional approaches to monitoring, evaluation, research and learning (MERL).
Traditional approaches to Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) may work well for USAID projects where specific outputs and outcomes are anticipated, and the operating environment is relatively stable. The MERLIN program internalizes uncertainty and complexity through flexible, iterative, and learning-focused approaches, methods, and tools.
MERLIN Mechanisms
To learn more about individual MERLIN Mechanisms, see the following program descriptions. The period of performance for these mechanisms ends in September 2024, except for Expanding the Reach of Impact Evaluation which runs through September 2025. While the MERLIN program is no longer accepting new buy-ins to allow partners to complete existing work before the end of their periods of performance, the links below provide…
Strategic Program for Analyzing Complexity and Evaluating Systems (SPACES)
Rapid Feedback (RF)
- Expanding the Reach of Impact Evaluation (ERIE)
Contact Us at MERLIN@usaid.gov
