Project Design and Implementation: Developing a Useful Monitoring and Evaluation Plan

Reasons for Monitoring and Evaluation at the Project Level To help ensure the project achieves expected environmental benefits Can be useful for guiding project progress Assure monies properly spent Bring insights to project manager to build his/her capacity for better project implementation

What constitutes project success? Training complete, Strategy and Action Plan Developed New Methodology produced, Publications produced, Network Established, PROJECT SUCCESS? but …… Success to whom? Of what environmental value? economic and political realities

Monitoring Project Performance Examples of Performance Indicators - quantitative + qualitative - Performance must show actual environmental benefit measured by hectares conserved, quantified greenhouse gas emission reductions, etc. Other Performance indicators could include performance in relation to relevance Relevance of outputs to stakeholders/users Relevance of work to national development Utility of output in achieving environmental change on the ground

Developing a M&E Plan How does an M&E plan get developed? Performance indicator should be developed with stakeholders/clients Monitoring indicator achievement – how?: analysis of views of stakeholders who should/could be using project’s outputs, through interviews with informants, through surveys….. Normally monitoring stays within a closed system yet outputs are relevant to a wider audience. .…….

COMMON WEAKNESSES IN M&E PLANS NO MONITORING OF INDICATORS OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE, INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE, UTILITY OF OUPUTS, UTILITY OF CAPACITY GAINED, …..; NO ASSIGNMENT OF ACCOUNTABILITIES & RESPONSIBILITIES; NO POST-PROJECT MONITORING

Monitoring and Evaluation Project Plan M&E Plan, covering monitoring and evaluation at three levels: execution performance, output delivery, project impact.

Monitoring and Evaluation Plan Execution Performance: Management and Supervision of project Responsibility of project management unit Supervision by the Steering Committee Responsibility of project manager

Monitoring and Evaluation Plan Output delivery Timing of outputs e.g. publications, etc Quantity Quality: Peer review process Distribution Responsibilities

Monitoring and Evaluation Plan Project Impact Measuring outcomes Log frame: Indicators How to measure indicators Target values for each year Source of data : baseline + current Responsibilities for measurement – who does it? Process Indicators – peer reviewed assessment; Stress Reduction Indicators – priorities to replicate best practice identified; Legal framework established; Environmental Status Indicators - actual measurable environmental change; activities to replicate methodology Or best practices under implementation.

Impact indicators Pressure-state-effect-response (causal chain) what measures are taken in which part of the chain?

Issues related to project impact monitoring Monitoring system to be included in the project - is it budgeted for? Baseline setting - who pays and how? Target setting - how? Capacity building impacts - what indicators and how to measure?