Local policy evaluation in China: Development, features, and challenges

This article analyzes local policy evaluation in China through 415 policy documents (2003–2026) and a four-dimensional framework covering institutional impetus, policy domains, evaluation timing, and intended use. Using temporal, content, and thematic analysis, it finds three stages of development: formation, growth, and deepening. Local policy evaluation has moved from scattered experimentation to broader cross-sectoral expansion and fuller policy embedding. The study argues that this evolution has been driven mainly by administrative authorization, hierarchical transmission, and local adaptation. Evaluation often enters governance first as a procedural arrangement, with stronger findings-oriented use developing later. Three challenges remain: a weak localized knowledge system, underdeveloped feedback mechanisms, and an immature evaluation culture.