Background: The debates about embedding cultural evaluative values into evaluation activities have been more dominant among indigenous evaluators in recent years. African indigenous evaluators now hold the view that the continent’s mainstream evaluation theories, studies, and practices are profoundly founded in Euro-American ideals and tend to exclude Afrocentric evaluation philosophies.Objectives: This article discusses some of the obstacles in the integration of indigenous evaluation values into contemporary evaluation theories and methods in Ghana and Africa at large. It describes how Afrocentric ideas, values, norms, relational patterns, and other cultural realities are rooted in evaluation methods, theories, and practices that are often neglected.Method: Using a qualitative strategy of inquiry grounded in multiple case studies and an indigenously responsive evaluation approach, this article identified and analysed several challenges associated with cultural integration in the evaluation. Several research themes were discussed, including indigenous relational networks, indigenous stakeholders’ participation, indigenous information gathering, feedback mechanisms, and the challenges of integrating cultural values into evaluation activities. This article drew from empirical, existing, and documentary data.Results: This article identified five challenges associated with cultural integration in evaluation activities including indigenous cultural guilt, power dependency, globalisation and localisation, post-colonial legacies, revenue, and urbanisation. This article highlighted that indigenous evaluative values stem from social interactions and relational networks, influenced by exogenous and endogenous factors.Conclusion: This article concludes that there are several ethical and notional challenges that arise while attempting to incorporate indigenous evaluation values and other socio-cultural philosophies into evaluation theories, methods, and practices.Contribution: To generate effective and efficient evaluation measurements and outcomes, a synergy between Afrocentric and Euro-American evaluation methodologies, conceptions, and practices would broaden evaluation processes and activities while also deepening the discourse on ‘Made in Africa’ evaluation.
{"title":"Factors affecting the integration of cultural values into evaluation: Indigenous perspectives","authors":"E. Boadu","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.702","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.702","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The debates about embedding cultural evaluative values into evaluation activities have been more dominant among indigenous evaluators in recent years. African indigenous evaluators now hold the view that the continent’s mainstream evaluation theories, studies, and practices are profoundly founded in Euro-American ideals and tend to exclude Afrocentric evaluation philosophies.Objectives: This article discusses some of the obstacles in the integration of indigenous evaluation values into contemporary evaluation theories and methods in Ghana and Africa at large. It describes how Afrocentric ideas, values, norms, relational patterns, and other cultural realities are rooted in evaluation methods, theories, and practices that are often neglected.Method: Using a qualitative strategy of inquiry grounded in multiple case studies and an indigenously responsive evaluation approach, this article identified and analysed several challenges associated with cultural integration in the evaluation. Several research themes were discussed, including indigenous relational networks, indigenous stakeholders’ participation, indigenous information gathering, feedback mechanisms, and the challenges of integrating cultural values into evaluation activities. This article drew from empirical, existing, and documentary data.Results: This article identified five challenges associated with cultural integration in evaluation activities including indigenous cultural guilt, power dependency, globalisation and localisation, post-colonial legacies, revenue, and urbanisation. This article highlighted that indigenous evaluative values stem from social interactions and relational networks, influenced by exogenous and endogenous factors.Conclusion: This article concludes that there are several ethical and notional challenges that arise while attempting to incorporate indigenous evaluation values and other socio-cultural philosophies into evaluation theories, methods, and practices.Contribution: To generate effective and efficient evaluation measurements and outcomes, a synergy between Afrocentric and Euro-American evaluation methodologies, conceptions, and practices would broaden evaluation processes and activities while also deepening the discourse on ‘Made in Africa’ evaluation.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139250803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Global health partnerships (GHPs) have flourished across Africa as alternative governance mechanisms seeking to strengthen local health systems for effective national planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. Mutual and trust-based relationships anticipate fostering relations that build weak systems for improved availability of data and information for local informed decision-making and programme learning.Objectives: This article aims to explore and demonstrate how global health monitoring and evaluation partnerships (GHMEPs) are contested spaces contrary to the pervasive collaborative discourse in official government policies.Method: Data for this study were collected using content analysis of existing documents and key informant interviews for a qualitative case study. Furthermore, monitoring and evaluation (ME) policy documents and key informant interviews with the ME staff from the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Zimbabwe, were purposively selected. Ethics clearance was sought from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, HSREC/00002455/2021.Results: The results show that GHMEPs are contested spaces despite the expectation to foster mutual trust and improved availability of quality data and information for informed decision-making and learning. Evidence shows partner contests through unspectacular soft power strategies to counterbalance resource and power imbalances in partnerships.Conclusion: The evidence of unspectacular soft power strategies suggests that collaboration for ME conceals and prolongs opportunities for addressing practical and contested challenges, hence failing the test for ideal partnerships.Contribution: The article contributes to a critical understanding of the limitations of the current theorisation of partnerships, which erroneously assumes trust, mutuality, and equality between resourced and under-resourced partners.
{"title":"Global health monitoring and evaluation partnerships as contested spaces in Zimbabwe","authors":"Zacharia Grand, Sybert Mutereko","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.693","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.693","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Global health partnerships (GHPs) have flourished across Africa as alternative governance mechanisms seeking to strengthen local health systems for effective national planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. Mutual and trust-based relationships anticipate fostering relations that build weak systems for improved availability of data and information for local informed decision-making and programme learning.Objectives: This article aims to explore and demonstrate how global health monitoring and evaluation partnerships (GHMEPs) are contested spaces contrary to the pervasive collaborative discourse in official government policies.Method: Data for this study were collected using content analysis of existing documents and key informant interviews for a qualitative case study. Furthermore, monitoring and evaluation (ME) policy documents and key informant interviews with the ME staff from the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Zimbabwe, were purposively selected. Ethics clearance was sought from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, HSREC/00002455/2021.Results: The results show that GHMEPs are contested spaces despite the expectation to foster mutual trust and improved availability of quality data and information for informed decision-making and learning. Evidence shows partner contests through unspectacular soft power strategies to counterbalance resource and power imbalances in partnerships.Conclusion: The evidence of unspectacular soft power strategies suggests that collaboration for ME conceals and prolongs opportunities for addressing practical and contested challenges, hence failing the test for ideal partnerships.Contribution: The article contributes to a critical understanding of the limitations of the current theorisation of partnerships, which erroneously assumes trust, mutuality, and equality between resourced and under-resourced partners.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":" 5","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135242207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Adeline Sibanda, Tanaka D. Sibanda, Tariro N. Sibanda
{"title":"Towards equitable evaluation through the use of the African Evaluation Principles","authors":"Adeline Sibanda, Tanaka D. Sibanda, Tariro N. Sibanda","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.697","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.697","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"136 2","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135776409","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: A care facility for people with disabilities struggles to obtain financial support for its Parent Education and Support Programme. The programme’s design includes two implementers, an occupational therapist and a community-based worker, increasing its core costs. To enhance the likelihood of donor support, the Facility considered choosing the best-suited implementer for the programme. To help inform this decision, a formal methodological approach to high-level decision-making called multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) was utilised. Objective: Through a case study, this paper demonstrates how the MCDA methodology, using the analytical hierarchical process (AHP), was applied in a programme evaluation context. Method: Decision models were constructed using the AHP MCDA method and elicited rater judgments. Raters were drawn from four stakeholder groups: Programme beneficiaries, management, donors, and experts in disability and rehabilitation. This was followed by assigning criteria weights, establishing local priorities for each alternative, and aggregating the judgments. The model was then synthesised, and a sensitivity analysis was conducted. Results: The findings revealed that specific outcomes were attributed to each implementer, and thus, deciding to employ only one implementer would have had serious consequences for the programme’s quality and the achievement of intended outcomes. Conclusion: The results confirmed the usefulness of AHP MCDA for programme design decisions. Contribution: This article contributes by enhancing the understanding of the AHP MCDA methodology. Secondly, it demonstrates the suitability of this methodology for programme designers, evaluators, or non-profit organisations (NPOs) who need to make informed decisions about the design and implementation of interventions.
{"title":"Using the analytical hierarchical process for programme design decisions: A disability case study","authors":"Carren G. Duffy, Lara Minne","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.701","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.701","url":null,"abstract":"Background: A care facility for people with disabilities struggles to obtain financial support for its Parent Education and Support Programme. The programme’s design includes two implementers, an occupational therapist and a community-based worker, increasing its core costs. To enhance the likelihood of donor support, the Facility considered choosing the best-suited implementer for the programme. To help inform this decision, a formal methodological approach to high-level decision-making called multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) was utilised. Objective: Through a case study, this paper demonstrates how the MCDA methodology, using the analytical hierarchical process (AHP), was applied in a programme evaluation context. Method: Decision models were constructed using the AHP MCDA method and elicited rater judgments. Raters were drawn from four stakeholder groups: Programme beneficiaries, management, donors, and experts in disability and rehabilitation. This was followed by assigning criteria weights, establishing local priorities for each alternative, and aggregating the judgments. The model was then synthesised, and a sensitivity analysis was conducted. Results: The findings revealed that specific outcomes were attributed to each implementer, and thus, deciding to employ only one implementer would have had serious consequences for the programme’s quality and the achievement of intended outcomes. Conclusion: The results confirmed the usefulness of AHP MCDA for programme design decisions. Contribution: This article contributes by enhancing the understanding of the AHP MCDA methodology. Secondly, it demonstrates the suitability of this methodology for programme designers, evaluators, or non-profit organisations (NPOs) who need to make informed decisions about the design and implementation of interventions.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"116 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136356728","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: In 2015, Plan International UK undertook a bold experiment: enabling children in participating in the multi-sectoral programme Building Skills for Life to evaluate the programme. Objectives: The primary objective of this experiment was to assess if a child-led evaluation is feasible, valuable and desirable. Feasible, in consideration of children’s abilities and the intricacies of a multisectoral evaluation; valuable in comparison with expert-led evaluations and desirable in relation to the evidence already available. Method: These experiments used a range of methodologies to facilitate children’s collecting and analysing data to return full evaluative judgements. While these experiments were deemed successful and credible on account of the reviews and support received by the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) community and the donor, the years that followed did not see child-led monitoring and evaluation flourish across the international development sector, despite renewed interest and international commitments, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Results: This article explores the contribution these experiences can bring to today’s evaluation practice and argues that child participation in monitoring and evaluation is not simply desirable; it is a right and an opportunity to sharpen the objectives of programmes addressed to children. Conclusion: This article concludes that it is time to abandon M&E practices carried out on children particularly in child-focused programmes and insist on M&E to be, at the very least, carried out with children, if not, as is preferable, by children. Contribution: This article highlights that involving children in social development aimed at changing the societies in which they will grow up and live, is not a matter of good practice or inclusion, but a matter of justice.
{"title":"Shifting power in evaluation: Lessons from child-led evaluations","authors":"Laura Hughston","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.682","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.682","url":null,"abstract":"Background: In 2015, Plan International UK undertook a bold experiment: enabling children in participating in the multi-sectoral programme Building Skills for Life to evaluate the programme. Objectives: The primary objective of this experiment was to assess if a child-led evaluation is feasible, valuable and desirable. Feasible, in consideration of children’s abilities and the intricacies of a multisectoral evaluation; valuable in comparison with expert-led evaluations and desirable in relation to the evidence already available. Method: These experiments used a range of methodologies to facilitate children’s collecting and analysing data to return full evaluative judgements. While these experiments were deemed successful and credible on account of the reviews and support received by the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) community and the donor, the years that followed did not see child-led monitoring and evaluation flourish across the international development sector, despite renewed interest and international commitments, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Results: This article explores the contribution these experiences can bring to today’s evaluation practice and argues that child participation in monitoring and evaluation is not simply desirable; it is a right and an opportunity to sharpen the objectives of programmes addressed to children. Conclusion: This article concludes that it is time to abandon M&E practices carried out on children particularly in child-focused programmes and insist on M&E to be, at the very least, carried out with children, if not, as is preferable, by children. Contribution: This article highlights that involving children in social development aimed at changing the societies in which they will grow up and live, is not a matter of good practice or inclusion, but a matter of justice.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"20 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135244235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nanmathi Manian, Eddy J. Walakira, Karen Megazzini, Daniel Oliver, Paul Bangirana, Kato Francis
Background: Undertaking child-focused evaluations using a participatory approach has received recognition in recent years. Such an approach is critical not only to build capacity amongst children and youth but also to increase the rigour, validity and usefulness of evaluation findings. Objectives: The current paper builds on the methods used in a longitudinal evaluation of a parenting programme on reintegration outcomes of children, ages 1–13 years, living in residential care facilities in Uganda. The procedures used to select and modify measures to enable 8–13-year-old children to self-report on their own outcomes are described. Method: Using a grounded theory of child development, the authors describe the data collection protocols and child-friendly measures used as well as the piloting work that was done by engaging children in the feedback process. Results: The study underscored the importance of adapting hybrid methods to the local context of a child-focused evaluation, especially in collecting data from young children on sensitive topics across a variety of situations. Conclusion: The process described in this article can be replicated for designing and conducting evaluations that are child centric and have children as informants of their own well-being. Contribution: The article contributes to a growing body of knowledge on child-focused evaluations by building on a study conducted in Uganda that focused on developing child-centric measures and data collection procedures. This study shows how to involve children as respondents and assists evaluators to design studies that are ethical, safe, and sensitive to the needs of the children.
{"title":"Child-focused evaluation: Involving children as their own respondents","authors":"Nanmathi Manian, Eddy J. Walakira, Karen Megazzini, Daniel Oliver, Paul Bangirana, Kato Francis","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.688","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.688","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Undertaking child-focused evaluations using a participatory approach has received recognition in recent years. Such an approach is critical not only to build capacity amongst children and youth but also to increase the rigour, validity and usefulness of evaluation findings. Objectives: The current paper builds on the methods used in a longitudinal evaluation of a parenting programme on reintegration outcomes of children, ages 1–13 years, living in residential care facilities in Uganda. The procedures used to select and modify measures to enable 8–13-year-old children to self-report on their own outcomes are described. Method: Using a grounded theory of child development, the authors describe the data collection protocols and child-friendly measures used as well as the piloting work that was done by engaging children in the feedback process. Results: The study underscored the importance of adapting hybrid methods to the local context of a child-focused evaluation, especially in collecting data from young children on sensitive topics across a variety of situations. Conclusion: The process described in this article can be replicated for designing and conducting evaluations that are child centric and have children as informants of their own well-being. Contribution: The article contributes to a growing body of knowledge on child-focused evaluations by building on a study conducted in Uganda that focused on developing child-centric measures and data collection procedures. This study shows how to involve children as respondents and assists evaluators to design studies that are ethical, safe, and sensitive to the needs of the children.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"98 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135426609","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
E. Agbodjan, Miché Ouédraogo, Moussa Thiaw, Pascal K. Kablan
The state of monitoring and evaluation systems in Francophone Africa: An approximation through rapid diagnosisBackground: Francophone African countries are facing strong internal and external pressures to promote monitoring and evaluation systems (ME). Unfortunately, the state of development of ME functions in these countries are poorly known.Objectives: This study aims to assess the status of selected components of ME systems in Francophone Africa from an action-research perspective.Method: This study uses two different methods: a literature review and an online survey of key informants in 23 Francophone African countries.Results: The results highlight the current context of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, including the regulatory frameworks, policies and guides on ME as well as the formal structures responsible for ME in surveyed countries. Furthermore, results indicate a weakness in ME capacity building frameworks.Conclusion: Poor knowledge of the state of ME in Francophone African countries is an impediment to the process of institutionalising ME and evidence-based decision making.Contribution: By highlighting the state of ME institutionalisation, the results of this research will provide guidance to the various stakeholders on the measures to be put in place to effectively support Francophone African countries in their process of institutionalising ME of public policies.
{"title":"Etat des systèmes de suivi et d’évaluation en Afrique francophone : une approximation au moyen d’un diagnostic rapide","authors":"E. Agbodjan, Miché Ouédraogo, Moussa Thiaw, Pascal K. Kablan","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.654","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.654","url":null,"abstract":"The state of monitoring and evaluation systems in Francophone Africa: An approximation through rapid diagnosisBackground: Francophone African countries are facing strong internal and external pressures to promote monitoring and evaluation systems (ME). Unfortunately, the state of development of ME functions in these countries are poorly known.Objectives: This study aims to assess the status of selected components of ME systems in Francophone Africa from an action-research perspective.Method: This study uses two different methods: a literature review and an online survey of key informants in 23 Francophone African countries.Results: The results highlight the current context of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, including the regulatory frameworks, policies and guides on ME as well as the formal structures responsible for ME in surveyed countries. Furthermore, results indicate a weakness in ME capacity building frameworks.Conclusion: Poor knowledge of the state of ME in Francophone African countries is an impediment to the process of institutionalising ME and evidence-based decision making.Contribution: By highlighting the state of ME institutionalisation, the results of this research will provide guidance to the various stakeholders on the measures to be put in place to effectively support Francophone African countries in their process of institutionalising ME of public policies.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76557207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Augustine Savanhu, S. Mazongonda, Audacious Jaunda, I. Chirisa
{"title":"Process evaluation in the context of emergencies: Lessons learnt from Operation Restore Hope","authors":"Augustine Savanhu, S. Mazongonda, Audacious Jaunda, I. Chirisa","doi":"10.4102/aej.v11i1.597","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v11i1.597","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"3 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81895020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Growing and nurturing monitoring and evaluation on the African continent","authors":"Mark Abrahams","doi":"10.4102/aej.v10i1.674","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v10i1.674","url":null,"abstract":"No abstract available.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"143 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85270923","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Strengthening the capacities of countries and organisations to perform monitoring and evaluation (ME) functions is gaining momentum in the Global South. However, there is limited literature on the effectiveness and impact of these capacity strengthening initiatives in Africa. Across the continent, there has been a global push to strengthen ME capacity both within the state and non-state sector. The rationale for the push and investments is based on the premise that ME capacity is critical for assisting public officials, non-state sector development managers, non-governmental organisations, and donors to improve the design and implementation of their projects, improve progress, increase impact, and enhance learning. Despite considerable investments to build ME capacity in the African context, literature shows that the measurement of these initiatives is non-existent.Objectives: To explore ME capacity strengthening initiatives and how their effectiveness is being measured.Method: The study adopted a qualitative research approach, specifically using semi-structured interviews to gain an in-depth understanding of capacity-strengthening approaches and how capacity strengthening activities are measured. A sample was drawn from Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.Results: This study found that ME capacity strengthening in the selected countries is ad hoc, indiscriminate, haphazard and mainly focuses on developing individual skills and abilities.Conclusion: The significance of strengthening ME system capacity in Anglophone Africa has been strongly supported by this study, considering the critical impact that effective ME systems have in enabling countries to reach their development goals.
{"title":"Strengthening and measuring monitoring and evaluation capacity in selected African programmes","authors":"S. Masvaure, Tebogo E. Fish","doi":"10.4102/aej.v10i1.635","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/aej.v10i1.635","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Strengthening the capacities of countries and organisations to perform monitoring and evaluation (ME) functions is gaining momentum in the Global South. However, there is limited literature on the effectiveness and impact of these capacity strengthening initiatives in Africa. Across the continent, there has been a global push to strengthen ME capacity both within the state and non-state sector. The rationale for the push and investments is based on the premise that ME capacity is critical for assisting public officials, non-state sector development managers, non-governmental organisations, and donors to improve the design and implementation of their projects, improve progress, increase impact, and enhance learning. Despite considerable investments to build ME capacity in the African context, literature shows that the measurement of these initiatives is non-existent.Objectives: To explore ME capacity strengthening initiatives and how their effectiveness is being measured.Method: The study adopted a qualitative research approach, specifically using semi-structured interviews to gain an in-depth understanding of capacity-strengthening approaches and how capacity strengthening activities are measured. A sample was drawn from Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.Results: This study found that ME capacity strengthening in the selected countries is ad hoc, indiscriminate, haphazard and mainly focuses on developing individual skills and abilities.Conclusion: The significance of strengthening ME system capacity in Anglophone Africa has been strongly supported by this study, considering the critical impact that effective ME systems have in enabling countries to reach their development goals.","PeriodicalId":37531,"journal":{"name":"African Evaluation Journal","volume":"29 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83514274","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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