Convened by Linda Khumalo, University of Antwerp, and Evans Boadu and Caitlin Blaser Mapitsa, University of the Witwatersrand

Evaluation has traditionally been shaped by dominant epistemologies that privilege Western scientific paradigms, frequently marginalising Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) and undermining their legitimacy as valuable frameworks for informing development interventions and assessing their outcomes. Such delegitimisation of Indigenous knowledges perpetuates epistemic inequalities and constrains the contextual relevance of programme evaluation when addressing complex development challenges. Nevertheless, evaluation holds significant transformative potential when it is contextually grounded. This underscores the necessity of examining the methodologies and approaches employed in programme evaluations, as well as the extent to which Indigenous knowledges are meaningfully integrated.
This harvest panel will present research on how IKS are reshaping the field of evaluation by challenging entrenched epistemic hierarchies and advancing pathways for decolonising practice and theory. While drawing on emerging findings from a forthcoming edited volume on IKS in evaluation, the panel will also welcome contributions from scholars and practitioners working on Indigenous Knowledges in development and evaluation more broadly.

Presenters will share theoretical and empirical insights on the application of Indigenous Knowledges from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and other regions, drawing from the findings from the forthcoming edited volume and inviting additional contributions from other scholars and /practitioners. The panel will enrich perspectives on how IKS inform evaluation practice, reframe concepts of value, and challenge Euro-Western dominance in evaluation. The panel will explore three interlinked themes:

(i) Epistemic inequalities in evaluation: how they manifest and persist in development theory and practice.
(ii) IKS contributions: case studies of applying Indigenous Knowledges in diverse contexts, and the contestations involved.
(iii)Transformative pathways: how integrating IKS into evaluation fosters epistemic justice, advancing local communities' ways of knowing and contributing to sustainable futures.

By combining insights from the forthcoming volume with contributions from the broader scholarly and practitioner community, the panel aims to advance debates on pluriversality in evaluation and development. It will provide a critical platform for reflecting on the value of Indigenous Knowledges in shaping epistemological justice and sustainable futures, through generating (g)local insights from communities, scholars, evaluation and development practitioners, and policymakers.

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