EmergingResearch and evidenceFree

Longitudinal evaluation of BUILD

Final report

The final report of an evaluation of the Ford Foundation's BUILD initiative, which gave grantees flexible multi-year funding and capacity support. It covers 289 grantee partners from the 2016 to 2019 cohorts, using a survey with 110 responses, 27 interviews, 4 focus groups and document review. Findings show BUILD helped impact and resilience, a second grant consolidated gains, and grantees need clear, timely word on future funding.

Why it is in the libraryThe strongest recent evidence that flexible money plus dedicated capacity support builds resilience and impact, and that gains fade without follow-on funding.

Open the resource →

Keywords

How to cite

Ron Dwyer-Voss, Raphaëlle Bisiaux, Maggie Bangser, Monique Liston, Janet Mawiyoo, Susana Morales, Matilda Svedberg (2025). Longitudinal evaluation of BUILD: Final report. NIRAS Sweden AB. https://www.fordfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NIRAS-Longitudinal-Evaluation-of-BUILD-Final-Report_9-April-2025.pdf

Related in the library

  • 13.1C167

    Capacity Building 3.0: How to Strengthen the Social Ecosystem

    A paper that proposes a new way to talk about capacity building, drawing on TCC Group's 35 years of designing and evaluating capacity-building work. It has 4 sections: core concepts and definitions of capacity and capacity building; who needs to build capacity; how the idea of capacity has changed, leading to an organisational actualisation framework; and newer methods used in effective capacity building. Funders and consultants use it to frame their approach.

    ClassicResearch and evidenceFree
  • 13.1C168

    Strengthening Nonprofit Capacity: Core Concepts in Capacity Building

    A primer for grantmakers on supporting grantee capacity. It defines nonprofit effectiveness, capacity and capacity building, and covers trust between funders and grantees, links to funder strategy, grantee and funder readiness, and 5 types of support from unrestricted grants to collective capacity building. It sets out 3 principles: contextual, continuous and collective. Each section ends with questions for grantmakers, and a final section covers measuring impact.

    Start hereClassicKey manual or guideFree

Suggestion box

Something to fix or add here?

Know a better resource on this subject, found a broken link, or spotted a mistake in this record? Tell us.

About C169 Longitudinal evaluation of BUILD

A person reads every message. A title, a link or a few words is enough.

What is it about?
Why is it useful, or what needs fixing? A title or a link alone is fine too.