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ARCHIVED - Evaluation of the Research and Policy Initiatives Assistance Program - Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat


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1.0 Introduction

This report presents the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the evaluation of the Research and Policy Initiatives Assistance Program (RPIA Program) for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (the Secretariat). The evaluation was undertaken to respond to the requirements for an evaluation of the program for its renewal, in accordance with the Policy on Transfer Payments and Treasury Board requirements. The evaluation findings will also serve program managers by providing information to improve program delivery and performance. The Secretariat/Finance Canada (FIN) engaged Government Consulting Services (GCS) to undertake the evaluation.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the program in terms of relevance, success, cost-effectiveness, and alternatives. The research for this evaluation was conducted between December 2008 and January 2009.

The evaluation report is organized as follows:

  • Section 1 presents a description of the RPIA Program.
  • Section 2 presents the methodology for the evaluation.
  • Section 3 presents findings by evaluation issue and question.
  • Section 4 presents the conclusions and recommendations.

1.1 Background

The RPIA Program at the Secretariat is a class-contribution program used for small, ad hoc initiatives that contribute to Secretariat objectives but do not deliver a clear good or service. The program can provide up to 50 per cent of eligible costs of individual approved projects, up to a total of $500,000 paid out over the life of the initiative. There is no separate funding base for the program. The RPIA Program functions less as a program in and of itself and more as a mechanism for existing programs to deliver their objectives. As such, funding is provided from existing budgets. Use of this authority requires the recommendation of a branch head, the sign-off of the department's senior full-time financial officer, and the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury Board.

The terms and conditions of the program were set to expire on March 31, 2008, but were extended for one year under the terms of the Policy on Transfer Payments in effect at the time. A summative evaluation of the program is required to renew it for another five-year period. 

1.1.1 Budget

Over the five-year period of the evaluation (2003–04 to 2007–08), a total of $928,674 was approved through the RPIA Program, $423,674 of which was provided directly by the Secretariat. This represents an average of $185,735 per year allocated for projects. The breakdown of spending by year is provided in Table 1.

Table 1:  Secretariat RPIA Program - Approved Funding
Fiscal Year Funding Amount Provided by the Secretariat Funding Amount Provided by Other Government Departments Total RPIA Program Funding Provided
2003–04 $ 110,868 $ 300,000 $ 410,868
2004–05 $ 83,932 $ 175,000 $ 258,932
2005–06 $ 87,500 - $ 87,500
2006–07 $ 49,874 - $ 49,874
2007–08 $ 91,500 $ 30,000 $ 121,500
Total $ 423,674 $ 505,000 $ 928,674

The RPIA Program funding was allocated to a total of 11 projects that supported a wide range of activities. Note that some of these were multi-year projects. Research and the creation of, or participation in, councils were the activities most frequently undertaken with the projects (four and three projects, respectively). Funds were also used to hold workshops and symposia (two projects), to hold conferences (one project), and to develop strategies (one project). See Appendix A for a full list of RPIA Program–approved projects during the five-year evaluation period.