3. Performance

This chapter analyzes the performance of completed GEF projects, drawing on evidence from a portfolio of 2,475 completed projects with terminal evaluations independently validated through June 2025 (table 3.1). Together, these projects represent $10.7 billion in GEF funding and $73.9 billion in reported materialized cofinancing. The chapter assesses portfolio performance in terms of project outcomes, sustainability, quality of implementation and execution, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E). It also looks at performance at the regional/country level, including findings from strategic country cluster evaluations focusing on GEF interventions in drylands, the Lower Mekong River Basin, and small island developing states (SIDS). The chapter then takes an in-depth look at enhancing the sustainability of project outcomes by GEF support to three critical areas: broader adoption, environmentally coherent national policies, and shifts in stakeholder behavior from environmentally harmful to environmentally friendly practices. This provides a real-time review of how GEF-8 projects are designed to drive transformative change. The chapter concludes with an assessment of administrative and operational efficiency.