28 May 2019“As one of the first expenditure programmes of the European Union (EU), the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is regularly monitored and evaluated. Ex ante evaluation is a legal requirement of the EU’s Financial Regulation, responding to well-established guidelines under the ‘integrated impact assessment’ system. It is directly conducted by the European Commission (EC) and assesses the cost-effectiveness and the distributional consequences of proposed CAP reform scenarios. Ex post (retrospective) evaluation seeks to measure the effectiveness, efficiency and relevance of CAP measures. Ex-post evaluation of the CAP is co-ordinated by the Commission’s Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development, in relation with MemberStates and is often carried out by independent experts, both at European leveland at national and/or regional levels.”