Evaluability assessment of social protection services for people experiencing homelessness in Brazil

This is an Evaluability Assessment (EA) of the Specialized Care for Vulnerable Populations (SEAS) and Specialized Reference Centers for People Experiencing Homelessness (Centro POP) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. These are social protection services for people in vulnerable situations who use the streets for housing and/or survival. The Thurston and Ramaliu model was employed with the construction of theoretical and logical models and SWOT matrix, using the analysis of legal frameworks, technical documents, on-site visits, and discussion groups with local managers. Questions were developed to compose questionnaires validated using the Delphi technique. This validation enhanced the evaluative questions, increasing the analytical power of the tools. Significant lessons were identified regarding the object of investigation and the use of the EA. Regarding the object, the findings highlight how challenging it is to offer services tailored to this population, necessitating intensive intra- and intersectoral efforts. Conversely, significant potentials for the operation of these services were elucidated. Regarding the use of the EA, three key lessons stand out: i) EA supports the implementation of participatory evaluation, ii) employing various tools and data collection methods paves the way for applying multiple evaluation approaches, and iii) there are diverse stakeholders interested in the results of an EA. The feasibility of conducting a more extensive systematic evaluation was confirmed, making this EA a pioneering effort for services aimed at the people experiencing homelessness within the field of social assistance.