There is a strong perception in the region that UNDP is a "trusted" and "neutral" partner because it functions outside bilateral relations and foreign aid policy and does not have a lending mandate. UNDP was frequently referred to as a "centre of excellence" and is regularly sought out for policy advice by both state and non-state agencies. The evaluation indicates that UNDP has considerable influence in the area of democratic governance as evidenced by the fact that the organization has been invited to operate in new and politically sensitive areas such as corruption, human rights and capacity building of parliaments. As such, RCF governance programmes seem to have a comparative "outside" advantage and play an important role in fostering best practice and improved coordination at all levels. With respect to assessment of relevance, the evaluation identified the growing importance of governance to achieving development outcomes and the MDGs in Asia and the Pacific and the highly strategic opportunities that RCF II initiatives have created for future intervention by UNDP and other organizations. RCF II projects were frequently attributed with shaping the political culture on issues of gender equity, civic engagement, accountability and transparency and were seen to have made a major contribution in raising awareness of how concepts such as "the Asian values" and "the Pacific way" both promote and impede good governance. While UNDP was encouraged to narrow its focus within the area of democratic governance, stakeholders also recommended that the organization continue to work on multiple fronts to create sustainable change through the strategic use of bottom-up and top-down approaches applied in parallel.