Where Does Your Institution Stand?
Get your institution's 2026 Knowledge-to-Impact Profile.
13 institutional peer groups. Three evidence perspectives. One African institutional benchmark.
IfEDI Africa invites institutions shaping economic development and innovation to participate in the inaugural 2026 Institutional Economic Development & Innovation Knowledge-to-Impact Benchmark Assessment. The benchmark examines whether institutional knowledge is understood, appropriately accessible, used in decisions and implementation, retained, shared and converted into economic development and innovation impact. The 2026 assessment establishes the inaugural evidence baseline and contributes to the African Economic Development & Innovation Atlas 2026.
Strong institutions should be able to demonstrate their capability. Developing institutions should be able to diagnose where improvement is needed. Every institution should know where it stands.
BE COUNTED.
BE BENCHMARKED.
BUILD CAPABILITY.
LEAD YOUR CATEGORY.
Don't Let Your Institution Be Absent From the 2026 Benchmark
2026 establishes the inaugural baseline. Institutions need adequate participation from the people who work and serve inside them and the people who directly experience them from outside in order to build a credible institutional picture.
Participation provides an opportunity to understand:
- • where institutional knowledge systems are working;
- • where knowledge is failing to reach practice;
- • where employees understand systems but cannot access them;
- • where systems exist but are not being used;
- • and where institutional capability needs strengthening.
Participation is the route into the benchmark. Institutions without sufficient eligible participation or usable evidence may not qualify for a complete institutional benchmark profile, peer-group positioning, subgroup comparison, or benchmark-based award consideration.
Know Where You Stand
Build an evidence-based picture of institutional knowledge capability.
Compare With the Right Peers
Universities should be understood alongside appropriate higher-education peers. Municipalities should be understood within local government. SETAs and skills institutions should be compared within the appropriate skills/professional-formation environment. DFIs should be understood alongside development-finance institutions. Comparable institutions should be compared with comparable institutions.
Find the Knowledge-to-Impact Gap
Identify the difference between having a system; people knowing about it; people being able to access it; and the institution actually using it to make better decisions and improve implementation.
Position Your Institution to Lead
Strong performance may position an eligible institution for benchmark-based recognition within its peer group or an appropriate subgroup.
KNOW YOUR INSTITUTION. BENCHMARK YOUR CAPABILITY. LEAD YOUR CATEGORY.
From Awareness to Impact
The benchmark traces institutional knowledge through five connected stages.
Stage 1
Awareness
Do people understand the important institutional systems, frameworks, processes and knowledge resources relevant to their work?
Stage 2
Appropriate Access
Can people obtain appropriate and legitimate access to the information and systems they need?
Stage 3
Observed Use
Are those systems actually used in decisions, programmes, implementation and operational activity?
Stage 4
Knowledge Practice
Does the institution capture lessons, reuse knowledge, maintain institutional memory, transfer knowledge and learn from experience?
Stage 5
External Knowledge Exchange
Does useful knowledge move effectively between the institution and the wider ecosystem in which it operates?
The benchmark distinguishes between:
The Employee/Internal assessment examines 15 institutional systems specifically adapted to the relevant peer group.
Three Ways to Participate
The benchmark builds a credible institutional picture from three perspectives. Use the route that matches your relationship to the institution.
Employee / Internal Participant
Staff, officials, professionals, managers, internal contributors and governance participants.
Use this assessment if you work for, manage, govern or otherwise serve internally in the institution being assessed. Your experience helps determine whether formal institutional systems are understood, appropriately accessible, and actually used in practice.
Complete one Employee/Internal assessment for the institution in which you currently work or serve internally.
I Work / Serve Inside This Institution
Select your institutional group below to access the Employee/Internal assessment.
External Participant
Students, residents, clients, businesses, investors, customers, members, beneficiaries, suppliers, employers, users, research users, partners and others with direct experience of the institution.
Use this route if you experience or interact with the institution from outside it through its services, programmes, learning, financing, infrastructure, research, membership, business support, partnerships, or other direct relationship. The exact description varies by institutional group.
Group-specific labels such as Student, Resident, Business, Investor, Client, Supplier, Customer, Learner, Employer, Founder, Member, Research User, Beneficiary, Member State or Partner are used — not a generic "stakeholder survey" button.
I Experience / Work With This Institution
Select your institutional group below to access the relevant External Participant assessment.
IfEDI Targeted Sample
A separately selected IfEDI sample provides an additional independent perspective and supports triangulation, validation and data-quality checking.
Members of the public must not self-select into this stream. The Targeted Sample is independently administered by IfEDI Africa.
Invitation Only — use the link supplied directly by IfEDI Africa. Targeted Sample links are not published on this website.
Which Assessment Should I Complete?
If you work or serve internally in an institution:
Complete the Employee/Internal assessment for that institution's group.
If you directly experience another institution from outside:
You may also complete the relevant Student / Resident / Client / Business / Member / Beneficiary / User / Partner assessment.
If IfEDI Africa specifically selected you for the Targeted Sample:
Use the Targeted Sample link supplied directly to you.
Answer about one institution at a time.
Example: If you work for a municipality, complete the G02 Local Government Employee/Internal Assessment. If you are also a chamber member and interact with a university as an employer or partner, you may additionally complete the G10 Member / Business / Partner Assessment and the G01 Student / Alumni / Employer / Partner Assessment.
Not Sure Where Your Institution Belongs?
Choose the institutional group that best reflects the institution's primary mandate and operating role — not simply who owns, regulates or funds it.
Government-owned does not automatically mean government department.
Search Your Institution Type
Find your group and access both public assessment links directly. Targeted Sample is invitation only.
| Group | Institutional Peer Group | Who Belongs Here | Employee / Internal | External Participants | Targeted Sample | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G01 | University & Higher Education Education, Skills & Research | Public universities, private universities, universities of technology, comprehensive universities, recognised higher-education colleges, business schools and comparable higher-education institutions. | Employee / Internal | Students / Alumni / Employers / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G02 | Local Government / Local Authority Government & Public Institutions | Metropolitan municipalities, district municipalities, local municipalities, cities, towns, counties and equivalent local government/local authority institutions elsewhere in Africa. | Employee / Internal | Residents / Businesses / Community / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G03 | National / Provincial / Regional Government & Public Administration Government & Public Institutions | National ministries, national departments, provincial/state/regional government departments, public administrations, government policy institutions, government programme departments and public administrative institutions whose principal function is policy, regulation, administration or public programme delivery. | Employee / Internal | Beneficiaries / Businesses / Implementing Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G04 | Development / Investment / SEZ / Industrial Development Finance, Investment & Development | Economic-development agencies, development agencies, investment-promotion agencies, trade and investment agencies, industrial-development agencies, development corporations, regional development corporations, SEZ authorities/operators, industrial parks, industrial-development zones, cluster-development institutions and place-based economic-development bodies. | Employee / Internal | Investors / Firms / Tenants / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G05 | DFI / Development Bank / Development Finance Institution Finance, Investment & Development | Development finance institutions, development banks, public-development lenders, SME-development finance institutions, agricultural-development finance institutions, infrastructure financiers, development funds and other financial institutions whose principal mandate includes development finance. | Employee / Internal | Clients / Investees / Project Sponsors / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G06 | Corporate / Industry / Anchor Firm Industry & Infrastructure | Private companies, major employers, manufacturers, mining companies, retailers, agribusinesses, logistics companies, technology companies, industrial firms, large local/regional companies and anchor firms. An anchor firm is an institution whose investment, employment, procurement, supply chain, market presence, localisation or innovation materially influences an economy, locality or sector. | Employee / Internal | Suppliers / Customers / SMMEs / Communities External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G07 | SOE / Utility / Infrastructure Industry & Infrastructure | State-owned operational enterprises, electricity utilities, water boards/utilities, rail entities, roads agencies, ports, airports, public transport entities, public infrastructure operators, telecommunications-infrastructure entities and other infrastructure/service operators. | Employee / Internal | Customers / Users / Contractors / Communities External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G08 | TVET / Skills / Professional Formation Education, Skills & Research | TVET colleges, vocational institutions, occupational training institutions, artisan-development institutions, apprenticeship institutions, SETAs, QCTO, QCTO-linked bodies, national or sector skills authorities, skills-development institutions, professional formation institutions, professional councils/professional bodies where education, competency, registration, CPD or professional formation is central, assessment bodies, moderation bodies, certification institutions and workplace-learning institutions. | Employee / Internal | Students / Learners / Employers / Workplace Hosts External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G09 | Innovation / Incubation / Enterprise Support / Technology Hub Enterprise & Business Support | Business incubators, accelerators, innovation hubs, technology hubs, entrepreneurship centres, maker spaces, enterprise-support centres, startup-support organisations, venture-building platforms, independently assessed technology-commercialisation support organisations and comparable innovation-support institutions. | Employee / Internal | Founders / Startups / Clients / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G10 | Chamber / BMO / Business Intermediary Enterprise & Business Support | Chambers of commerce and industry, national chambers, provincial/regional chambers, district/local chambers, business membership organisations, employer organisations, industry associations, sector business associations, business forums, business councils and representative/intermediary organisations connecting businesses with markets, government and development systems. | Employee / Internal | Members / Businesses / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G11 | Research / Science / Policy / Economic Intelligence Education, Skills & Research | Research councils, science councils, think tanks, policy institutes, economic-research institutes, observatories, economic-intelligence institutions, statistical/evidence institutions where appropriate, foresight institutions, standalone research centres and policy/economic advisory institutions. | Employee / Internal | Research Users / Policymakers / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G12 | Community / NGO / Traditional / Place-Based Community & Development Partners | NGOs, NPOs, non-profit companies or equivalent legal forms, foundations, trusts, community-based organisations, traditional authorities, traditional councils, community trusts, community land/property institutions, local development organisations, place-based development bodies and comparable community institutions. | Employee / Internal | Beneficiaries / Communities / Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
| G13 | Continental / Regional Institution / Development Partner Community & Development Partners | African continental institutions, Regional Economic Communities, regional intergovernmental organisations, cross-border development institutions, multilateral development organisations, bilateral development/cooperation agencies, donor agencies, development-cooperation institutions, international development programmes/facilities and comparable regional and international development partners. | Employee / Internal | Member States / Governments / Implementing Partners External Assessment | Invitation Only | View Details |
University & Higher Education
Public universities, private universities, universities of technology, comprehensive universities, recognised higher-education colleges, business schools and comparable higher-education institutions.
View Group DetailsLocal Government / Local Authority
Metropolitan municipalities, district municipalities, local municipalities, cities, towns, counties and equivalent local government/local authority institutions elsewhere in Africa.
View Group DetailsNational / Provincial / Regional Government & Public Administration
National ministries, national departments, provincial/state/regional government departments, public administrations, government policy institutions, government programme departments and public administrative institutions whose principal function is policy, regulation, administration or public programme delivery.
View Group DetailsDevelopment / Investment / SEZ / Industrial Development
Economic-development agencies, development agencies, investment-promotion agencies, trade and investment agencies, industrial-development agencies, development corporations, regional development corporations, SEZ authorities/operators, industrial parks, industrial-development zones, cluster-development institutions and place-based economic-development bodies.
View Group DetailsDFI / Development Bank / Development Finance Institution
Development finance institutions, development banks, public-development lenders, SME-development finance institutions, agricultural-development finance institutions, infrastructure financiers, development funds and other financial institutions whose principal mandate includes development finance.
View Group DetailsCorporate / Industry / Anchor Firm
Private companies, major employers, manufacturers, mining companies, retailers, agribusinesses, logistics companies, technology companies, industrial firms, large local/regional companies and anchor firms. An anchor firm is an institution whose investment, employment, procurement, supply chain, market presence, localisation or innovation materially influences an economy, locality or sector.
View Group DetailsSOE / Utility / Infrastructure
State-owned operational enterprises, electricity utilities, water boards/utilities, rail entities, roads agencies, ports, airports, public transport entities, public infrastructure operators, telecommunications-infrastructure entities and other infrastructure/service operators.
TVET / Skills / Professional Formation
TVET colleges, vocational institutions, occupational training institutions, artisan-development institutions, apprenticeship institutions, SETAs, QCTO, QCTO-linked bodies, national or sector skills authorities, skills-development institutions, professional formation institutions, professional councils/professional bodies where education, competency, registration, CPD or professional formation is central, assessment bodies, moderation bodies, certification institutions and workplace-learning institutions.
Innovation / Incubation / Enterprise Support / Technology Hub
Business incubators, accelerators, innovation hubs, technology hubs, entrepreneurship centres, maker spaces, enterprise-support centres, startup-support organisations, venture-building platforms, independently assessed technology-commercialisation support organisations and comparable innovation-support institutions.
View Group DetailsChamber / BMO / Business Intermediary
Chambers of commerce and industry, national chambers, provincial/regional chambers, district/local chambers, business membership organisations, employer organisations, industry associations, sector business associations, business forums, business councils and representative/intermediary organisations connecting businesses with markets, government and development systems.
View Group DetailsResearch / Science / Policy / Economic Intelligence
Research councils, science councils, think tanks, policy institutes, economic-research institutes, observatories, economic-intelligence institutions, statistical/evidence institutions where appropriate, foresight institutions, standalone research centres and policy/economic advisory institutions.
View Group DetailsCommunity / NGO / Traditional / Place-Based
NGOs, NPOs, non-profit companies or equivalent legal forms, foundations, trusts, community-based organisations, traditional authorities, traditional councils, community trusts, community land/property institutions, local development organisations, place-based development bodies and comparable community institutions.
View Group DetailsContinental / Regional Institution / Development Partner
African continental institutions, Regional Economic Communities, regional intergovernmental organisations, cross-border development institutions, multilateral development organisations, bilateral development/cooperation agencies, donor agencies, development-cooperation institutions, international development programmes/facilities and comparable regional and international development partners.
View Group DetailsWhat Can Participation Unlock?
A single response does not automatically create a credible institutional benchmark. Institutional profiles depend on adequate aggregated evidence.
Institutional Knowledge-to-Impact Profile
An evidence-based institutional diagnostic showing strengths and areas requiring improvement, subject to sufficient eligible data.
Peer-Group Benchmarking
Understand institutional performance within an appropriate peer environment.
Knowledge-to-Impact Gap Analysis
Identify where institutional systems exist but awareness, access, use, learning, or knowledge reuse remain weak.
Improvement Priorities
Support conversations on governance, management, organisational learning, institutional memory, implementation, and capability development.
African EDI Atlas 2026
Contribute to Africa's developing institutional evidence base.
Benchmark Recognition & Awards
Eligible high-performing institutions may be recognised and awarded as leading performers within their peer group or approved subgroup.
Could Your Institution Lead Its Category?
The IfEDI Africa 2026 Institutional Knowledge-to-Impact Benchmark is not only a diagnostic exercise. Subject to sufficient participation, eligibility, data quality, comparability and verification, IfEDI Africa will award the best-performing eligible institution within each of the 13 institutional peer groups. Where a peer group contains sufficiently comparable and adequately represented subgroups, IfEDI Africa may also award the best-performing eligible institution within those subgroups.
Very Important
Awards must not be based on popularity, nominations, number of survey respondents, public voting, or campaigning. They are based on benchmark evidence plus approved verification. Participation alone does not guarantee recognition. An institution must satisfy the applicable participation, respondent coverage, data-quality, eligibility, comparability, and verification requirements.
This is benchmark-based institutional recognition.
It is separate from:
- the nomination-based IfEDI Africa Economic Development & Innovation Excellence Awards; and
- ACOEDI paper, research and innovation competition awards.
Help Build Africa's Institutional Evidence Base
Findings from the 2026 assessment will contribute to the African Economic Development & Innovation Atlas 2026. The Atlas will help establish an inaugural evidence base on how institutions across Africa's economic-development ecosystem organise knowledge, access knowledge, use knowledge, preserve institutional memory, learn from implementation, engage external knowledge, and translate knowledge into development and innovation impact.
2026 is the starting point. Future assessment cycles can enable institutions and IfEDI Africa to track how institutional capability evolves over time.
A Structured, Multi-Perspective Assessment
13
Institutional Peer Groups
3
Evidence Perspectives
15
Core Institutional Systems in the Employee / Internal Assessment
The three perspectives are:
- Employee / Internal Participant;
- External Participant such as Student / Resident / Client / Business / Member / Beneficiary / User / Partner depending on group;
- IfEDI Targeted Sample — Invitation Only.
The 2026 assessment is the inaugural baseline. Benchmark interpretation and institutional recognition must consider participation, eligibility, institutional applicability, sampling quality, respondent coverage, data quality, comparability, and verification. The assessment is evidence-informed, structured, sector-adapted, multi-perspective, and designed for institutional benchmarking and improvement.
Participation Matters
A single response does not automatically create a credible institutional benchmark. IfEDI Africa may apply minimum participation, respondent coverage, eligibility, and data-quality requirements before producing an institutional profile, publishing peer-group positioning, making a subgroup comparison, determining a benchmark result, or determining award eligibility.
Where evidence is insufficient, an institution may be recorded as Participating without being Benchmark Eligible, Ranked, or Award Eligible.
Future institutional statuses may include:
These statuses are not assigned merely because forms have been completed.
Privacy & Responsible Use
The institutional assessment is designed for institutional learning, aggregate analysis, benchmarking, diagnostic improvement, and responsible institutional recognition.
Respondents should not enter unnecessary personal information, confidential case details, commercially sensitive information, or other sensitive institutional information into substantive assessment questions.
Individual Employee/Internal responses must not be used or presented as staff-performance appraisals.
Where a respondent separately chooses to provide contact information for IfEDI/ACOEDI follow-up, such information must be handled separately from institutional scoring data according to the stated consent arrangements.
Important: Do not assume every form is anonymous unless the final Microsoft Forms settings genuinely support that statement. Before public launch, administrators must confirm identity collection, response settings, contact-data handling, branching, and privacy configuration for all final Microsoft Forms.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will Your Institution Be Counted in the 2026 Baseline?
Strong institutions should be able to demonstrate it. Developing institutions should be able to diagnose it. Every institution should know where it stands.
Encourage participation from the people who know and experience institutions: employees, officials, professionals, students, residents, businesses, investors, clients, customers, suppliers, learners, employers, founders, members, research users, beneficiaries, member states, implementing partners, and other direct institutional participants.
BE COUNTED. BE BENCHMARKED. BUILD CAPABILITY. LEAD YOUR CATEGORY.