MySDG Academy hosted an online conversation on 29 Sept 2026. This is our monthly ASEAN SDG–SSE Roadmap Meetin which is a regional platform that brings partners together to exchange knowledge, review progress and strengthen collaboration around Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) developments across ASEAN countries.
The September session focused on research, evidence, monitoring and impact evaluation for SSE initiatives. The discussion explored how organisations can move beyond activity reporting and build stronger evidence of what actually changes in communities over time.
The sharing sessions were led by Mr. Aiman Muqri, Deputy Director of the Center for Community and Industry Engagement at Albukhary International University (AIU), and Professor Dato’ Dr. Rashila Ramli, the Deputy President of the Malaysian Social Science Association (PSSM)
Aiman shared how community initiatives can strengthen their evidence base by looking at four levels of results: activities, outputs, outcomes and long-term impact. He also emphasised the importance of involving communities early, collecting simple evidence from the beginning and using findings to improve future decisions.
Prof. Dato’ Dr. Rashila presented on monitoring and impact evaluation, highlighting the need to shift from reporting for compliance towards learning for improvement. Drawing from APPGM-SDG experience, she discussed results frameworks, participatory evaluation, capacity building and feedback loops as important elements of stronger impact systems.
The open discussion also featured remarks and reflections from Dr. Eri Trinurini (Indonesia), Dr. Victor Karunan (Thailand) and Dr. Khairil Ahmad (Malaysia), including the importance of community ownership, practical participation and flexible systems in sustaining projects beyond the funding period.
The meeting also covered:
- progress updates on the ASEAN SDG–SSE Roadmap;
- research and evidence sharing by AIU;
- monitoring and impact evaluation approaches;
- Q&A and open discussion; and
- preparation for the October ASEAN Partners Meeting.
The wider ASEAN SDG–SSE Roadmap continues to advance work around five areas: popularising SDG–SSE, strengthening partnerships, building data systems, enhancing capacities, and engaging grassroots communities and youth.
A key takeaway from this month’s discussion was clear: impact is not only about how much activity is delivered, but whether meaningful change can be demonstrated, learned from and sustained.
For organisations working in the social economy, stronger evidence and evaluation are therefore not just reporting tools. They are part of building better programmes, stronger community ownership and more sustainable impact.
