Fiona Mactaggart, Ph.D.

Dr. Fiona Mactaggart is a multi-disciplinary senior technical advisor with more than 10 years of experience in monitoring, evaluation, research, learning and adaptation (MERLA). Fiona works in the International Technical Practice, a diverse and high performing technical team that designs, tests, and applies innovative, evidence-based, and interdisciplinary approaches to development challenges. Fiona contributes to business development, program delivery, and thought leadership.  

Fiona advises primarily on health, economic, infrastructure and governance programs, in facilitation, quality assurance, and advisory roles. She advises across the MERLA system: monitoring (e.g., design of digital tools and visualisation platforms) research (e.g., cross-sectional survey design), evaluation methodologies (e.g., contribution analysis), learning (e.g., facilitating pause and reflect workshops), and adaptation (e.g., after-action reviews). Fiona has provided support to teams across Fiji, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea and Cambodia. Fiona also leads development of MERLA corporate standards, policies and learning briefs, helping to promote an organisational culture of learning.  

Fiona specialises in theory-based evaluations, health system strengthening, and operational research. Fiona has extensive public health experience and completed a DrPH that explored the broader public health impacts of coal seam gas mining in rural communities of low, middle and high-income countries.  

Prior to working on Abt’s Australia-Pacific portfolio, Fiona worked with Abt UK implementing projects funded by the UK Government. In Nepal, she advised the Department for International Development on an evaluation methodology to assess their 16-year health investment in Nepal. In Brazil, Fiona provided training on core MEL concepts to Ministry of Health professionals, contributing towards strengthening the use of data within the Ministry. She supports project teams’ efforts to develop and test theories of change and design MEL systems in complex settings. Fiona contributes her research expertise to program teams during the design, implementation, and analysis phase and during preparation of peer-reviewed journal articles.