This paper provides a general overview of the development of program evaluation in CIS countries. We start by telling a story that describes how evaluation appeared in the scene, how it developed and who the key players were in its development. We discuss the issue of demand for and supply of evaluation services. In the conclusion, we describe our view of the stages in the emergence of evaluation in the CIS and the perspective of each. The four stages we identify are: “An External Phenomenon” (1991–1995), “Initiation” (1996–2000), “Assimilation” (2000–2004), and “Implementation” (2005 to the present).

Evaluation is an emerging field in Russia, and the authors have been intensively involved in it for over a decade. This article explores the evolution of evaluation capacity and describes the growth of evaluator competencies in Russia. It focuses on areas with extensive development: (a) the institutionalization of regulatory impact assessment in the public sector, (b) evaluation’s development in nongovernmental organizations, (c) the growth of monitoring and evaluation capacity in private foundations, and (d) the emergence of local independent evaluation consulting. Although no common definition of evaluator competencies exists in Russia, the role may be included in a professional registry currently under development.