Evidence-based Policy: Importance and Issues

What is the purpose of the toolkit?
Over the last decade the UK government has been promoting the concept of 'evidence-bassed policy' (EBP). We are constantly asked by our partners in the South about what is happening in the UK regarding EBP and what can they learn from the UK experience. The aim of this toolkit is to identify lessons and approaches from EBP in the UK which may be valuable for developing countries. The approaches and tools presented are based on the assumption that the reader is a progressive policymaker in a developing country, and one who is interested in utilising EBP. The intended audience is made up of policymakers and policy advisers in the public sector, rather than those working within the private sector or civil society.

Where does Evidence-based Policymaking come from?
Using evidence to inform policy is not a new idea. What is new and interesting, however, is the increasing emphasis that has been placed on the concept in the UK over the last decade. The term evidence-based policymaking (EBP) has gained political currency under the New Labour governments since 1997. The emphasis was intended to signify the entry of a government with a modernising mandate, one committed to replacing ideologically driven politics with rational decision making. EBP has now become a focus for a range of policy communities, whether government departments, research organisations or think-tanks.

What is EBP?
EBP is an approach that 'helps people make well informed decisions about policies, programmes and projects by putting the best available evidence from research at the heart of policy development and implementation' (Davies, 2004: 3). EBP is a discourse or set of methods which informs the policy process, rather than one which aims directly to affect the eventual goals of the policy. It advocates a more rational, rigorous and systematic approach. The pursuit of EBP is based on the premise that policy decisions should be better informed by available evidence, and should include rational analysis. This is because policy and practice which are based on systematic evidence are seen to produce better outcomes. The desired progression is showed in Figure 1. As Davies notes (ibid) 'The diagram shows a shift away from opinion based policies being replaced by a more rigorous, rational approach that gathers, critically appraises and uses high quality research evidence to inform policymaking and professional practice.'

Click on the links for more information:

• Evidence-based Policy: Importance and Issues
  • Key issues surrounding EBP
  • The implications of EBP for developing countries
    
  • Summary of main points and Sources
• Approaches for Getting Evidence into Policy: Approaches and Tools Used in the UK
• Specific Tools used by the UK Government
• This handbook is also available as a pdf: Tools for Policy Impact Handbook (pdf 418kb)
• To view a summary and details of how to order printed copies, see the publications page
  

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