Editorial – 2019: Omniscience of monitoring and evaluation

Copyright: © 2019. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License. Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) processes and results can illuminate; they can inform and they can make sense of a complex contextual environment but they also have the potential to obfuscate, to complicate and/or to over-simplify complex situations and practices. According to advocates of the results-based management framework, all we need are clearly defined expected results, a delivery strategy, to make sure we measure and evaluate performance, to make adjustments where necessary and we will be able to improve conditions over time – or at least we will have evidence to suggest effectiveness and efficiency. The good news is that governments in Africa, businesses big and small as well as the general public are beginning to accept the need for M&E processes and results that can inform planning and sustainable development. There is also a synergetic relationship between M&E and good governance. M&E contributes to good governance by promoting accountability among other things, and good governance – a reflective and responsive process designed to serve the best interests of stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe – creates an enabling environment for M&E. Good governance also includes a culture of self-assessment, to learn from experience and to improve the outputs, outcomes and impacts of the policies and programmes being pursued. The pursuit of good governance, be this at the project, programme or policy level, is a collective ongoing challenge. The principles of good governance should inform the M&E approach and outcomes so that developmental policies and their implementation are not constrained by the political, social and economic environments but positively influenced instead. This edition showcases M&E practices across the African continent and beyond in various contexts. M&E is used in the economy, for governance, for development and, most importantly, for learning.