ABSTRACT
Royal commissions and “colored” papers and task forces were used frequently to examine and evaluate the effectiveness of various government policies and programs. The reports of the Royal Commission on Government Organization stressed, among other things, the need to justify expenditures. Treasury Board studies in 1974 and 1976 “found that little progress had been made in evaluating programs”. Since program evaluation is part of the management cycle in Canada, it is hardly surprising that deputy heads of departments and agencies have major roles to play. The evaluator is expected to describe relationships of the program under review with other relevant programs which may affect or duplicate its outputs. All departments and agencies are required to develop evaluation policies which are compatible with Treasury Board policy. The departmental policy establishes the framework within which departmental evaluation activities must take place. Once the policy is in place, the necessary planning process begins.
