The improvement of the different sectors does not depend only on monitoring and evaluation. It depends both on the quality of the actions developed, their management and then the monitoring and evaluation.
When an action is poorly developed, either because the problems have been poorly identified / formulated or because the actions selected are inappropriate, there is a high risk that the results will be bad: low impact. Even if this step is still successful and the management of the implementation of the actions is not adequate, the risk of failure is still high, only that in this case, the monitoring-evaluation has more power to formulate remedies that, if taken into account, can lead to the right result. Given the persistence of the poor quality of the results that you highlight, it is certainly on the development of actions that we must make serious improvements. If your monitoring and evaluation units have nothing to be ashamed of, that is to say that they are made by people who are really knowledgeable about it, there is no question of bringing in other people who might even damage the work if they are incompetent or partial. Generally, the monitoring-evaluators are not liked and everything is done to prevent you from working well. I presume that these kinds of obstacles must exist in this unit where you work, since it is the presidency, a high place of politics. But, is this still the case in all other sectors? I do not think so. So, above all, review the methodology of developing actions in the country. There must be serious problems at this level.
Thank you.
Dr. Emile Houngbo
Agricultural Economist
Expert in project development and monitoring & evaluation
RE: How to Measure the Impact of Monitoring and Evaluation Work
Dear Colleague,
The improvement of the different sectors does not depend only on monitoring and evaluation. It depends both on the quality of the actions developed, their management and then the monitoring and evaluation.
When an action is poorly developed, either because the problems have been poorly identified / formulated or because the actions selected are inappropriate, there is a high risk that the results will be bad: low impact. Even if this step is still successful and the management of the implementation of the actions is not adequate, the risk of failure is still high, only that in this case, the monitoring-evaluation has more power to formulate remedies that, if taken into account, can lead to the right result. Given the persistence of the poor quality of the results that you highlight, it is certainly on the development of actions that we must make serious improvements. If your monitoring and evaluation units have nothing to be ashamed of, that is to say that they are made by people who are really knowledgeable about it, there is no question of bringing in other people who might even damage the work if they are incompetent or partial. Generally, the monitoring-evaluators are not liked and everything is done to prevent you from working well. I presume that these kinds of obstacles must exist in this unit where you work, since it is the presidency, a high place of politics. But, is this still the case in all other sectors? I do not think so. So, above all, review the methodology of developing actions in the country. There must be serious problems at this level.
Thank you.
Dr. Emile Houngbo
Agricultural Economist
Expert in project development and monitoring & evaluation