Monitoring and evaluation

Providing support to a capacity development process is a purposeful intervention aimed at bringing about change. Through monitoring, practitioners assess from time to time whether the intervention is still on course towards achieving the envisioned results or whether adjustments are required. An evaluation at the end of an intervention assesses the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the intervention.

Within the aided development sector, the logical framework is the most commonly used tool for planning, as well as monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Although the methodology of a logical framework has its merits, it is often not well applied and mainly used as a checklist for the purpose of accountability. Monitoring is reduced to checking whether activities have been completed as planned. The logical framework (in practice not in theory) does not encourage stakeholders to critically reflect from time to time on the quality of the previous steps or the validity of analytical insights and assumptions at the beginning of every project. This however may not be so much a problem of the “logframe” method as such but the way it is linked to contractual agreements between donor and recipient. The bureaucratic implications of proposing a change in a logical framework are often discouraging. As a result practitioners are not stimulated to learn and to develop an eye for the unpredictable dynamics in a complex environment that makes the road to planned outcomes (and even the planned outcomes themselves) very uncertain. Therefore the logical framework is seen to induce linear thinking.

The resources on page all explore ways to overcome the limitations associated with the logical framework approach to ensure that M&E processes serve to facilitate learning and innovation.

Featured Article

Learning to evaluate capacity development: The making of 'Facilitating resourcefulness'

Screen shot 2011-11-29 at 10.39.52 AM This article is a supplement to Issue 43 of Capacity.org. It takes a look behind the scenes of an extensive evaluation of 26 case studies covering the support to capacity development of seven Dutch Development Partners under the coordination and partial responsibility of the Policy and Operations Evaluation Department (IOB) of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign affairs. The evaluation aimed to draw lessons on how to improve the effectiveness of future capacity development interventions.

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Recent Articles

How to write Terms of Reference for an evaluation

23 January 2012

Screen shot 2012-01-23 at 11.41.43 AMDeveloping an accurate and well-specified terms of reference (ToR) is a critical step in managing a high-quality evaluation. The evaluation ToR document serves as the basis for a contractual arrangement with one or more evaluators and sets the parameters against which the success of the assignment can be measured. This practical guide from the World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group sets out a few basic principles and guidelines to help in the development of an effective evaluation.

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Empowerment: A journey not a destination

19 January 2012

DfiD-Empowerment The DFID-funded Pathways of Women’s Empowerment Programme launched a synthesis report based on the findings and recommendations from five years of research in London on 13th January. The report, entitled 'Empowerment: A Journey not a Destination' draws on the collective works of 60 academic-activists in 12 countries on four continents. With six companion policy papers and case studies, the publication shares the latest learning and analysis on what works to enhance women’s empowerment in different parts of the world.

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CAPACITY → RESULTS

30 November 2011

capacity-resultsThis new publication from the Learning Network on Capacity Development (LenCD) features case stories on capacity development and development results. The collection showcases how endogenous investments in capacity development have led, over time, to produce short, medium and long-term sustainable results.

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Learning to evaluate capacity development: The making of 'Facilitating resourcefulness'

30 November 2011

Screen shot 2011-11-29 at 10.39.52 AM This article is a supplement to Issue 43 of Capacity.org. It takes a look behind the scenes of an extensive evaluation of 26 case studies covering the support to capacity development of seven Dutch Development Partners under the coordination and partial responsibility of the Policy and Operations Evaluation Department (IOB) of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign affairs. The evaluation aimed to draw lessons on how to improve the effectiveness of future capacity development interventions.

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3ie launches online database on systematic reviews

16 November 2011

The International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) has launched an online database of systematic reviews. This database provides policymakers and practitioners with easy access to systematic reviews that examine evidence on the effects of social and economic development interventions in low- and middle-income countries. It currently has over 100 reviews for many sectors, including agriculture, education, nutrition and health.

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Humanitarian action in drought-related emergencies

11 November 2011

drought-related emergenciesThe Action Learning Network on Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP) has published a Lessons Paper that identifies seventeen key lessons for humanitarian agencies responding to droughts, on topics such as: early warning, targeting, working with government, food aid, water interventions and nutrition. It builds on the 2007 ALNAP/ProVention paper Slow-onset Disasters: Drought and food and livelihoods insecurity and a review of over 100 evaluative documents produced by humanitarian agencies in the period 2007-2011.

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Essential Readings

  • David Watson (2010) "Combining the ‘Best of Two Worlds’ in Monitoring and Evaluation of Capacity Development" in: Ubels, J., N. Acquaye-Baddoo and A. Fowler (eds) Capacity Development in Practice, Earthscan, pp. 239-249

  • Nigel Simister with Rachel Smith (2010) Monitoring and Evaluating Capacity Building: Is it really that difficult? INTRAC Praxis Paper 3

  • Engel, P., N. Keijzer, and T. Land (2007) A balanced approach to monitoring and evaluating capacity and performance: A proposal for a framework, ECDPM Discussion Paper No. 58E

  • David Watson (2006) Monitoring and Evaluation of Capacity and Capacity Development, ECDPM Discussion Paper 58B

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Featured Community

MandE News: Resources on M&E communities of practice

Launched by Rick Davies, an independent M&E consultant, in 1997, MandE NEWS is both an information service and community resource on monitoring and evaluation practice. The portal contains a comprehensive database of M&E tools and methods, training and job opportunities, and the latest news and events in this area.

The web portal supports facilitates several mailing lists on M&E issues, especially as they relate to international development aid. It also contains a helpful overview of numerous specialized e-groups and learning communities, including country-specific groups active in all regions of the world.

For a full overview of email lists (egroups), and information on how to join, or start a group, please click here.

Online M&E communities