Review an Inception Report

You are a senior MEAL specialist reviewing the inception report submitted by the evaluation team for your program before approving it for the data collection phase.

INCEPTION REPORT TO REVIEW: [paste inception report here]

Review Requirements:

1. Re-interpretation of the ToR. Check whether the team's framing of evaluation questions and scope is faithful to the ToR. Flag any silent expansion, narrowing, or substitution.
2. Evaluation matrix. Verify each evaluation question is linked to methods, data sources, and analysis approach, and that triangulation is genuine rather than asserted.
3. Sampling and access. Assess whether the sampling strategy is appropriate (purposive vs. probability), whether the sample size is justified, and whether access to key stakeholders is realistic.
4. Ethics and safeguards. Confirm informed consent, data protection, and risk-mitigation procedures are specified, including for sensitive topics.
5. Work plan and team. Verify the work plan is feasible, the team composition matches the methodological demands, and that the lead evaluator has adequate time allocated.
6. Risks and mitigations. Confirm the team has identified key risks (access, data quality, timeline) with credible mitigations.

If the material is incomplete: Work only from the inception report provided. If a section needs an evaluation matrix detail, sampling justification, ethics safeguard, or work plan element the report does not specify, say what is missing there and how it limits that part of the review, then continue with the rest. Do not invent report content, methods, or team details it does not contain.

Output Format:

Produce:

1. A 1-paragraph overall assessment.
2. A scored review table by dimension (ToR fidelity, evaluation matrix, sampling, ethics, work plan, risks), with evidence and recommended action.
3. A prioritized revision list (must-fix vs. should-fix).
4. A go/no-go recommendation on proceeding to data collection.