MONITORING, EVALUATION, ACCOUNTABILITY AND LEARNING

Introduction
Monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) are essential components of day to day programme management and are critical to the success of any programme. The quality of MEAL is very crucial across all projects. An effective MEAL system will help in:

  • tracking progress,
  • make adjustments,
  • discover unplanned effects of programmes,
  • judging the impact that we have made on the lives of those with whom we are working.

A MEAL system also helps individuals and teams to be accountable to stakeholders through information sharing and developing a complaints or feedback mechanism which can help to guide programme implementation. This workshop will introduce participants to MEAL concepts and practices.  It is intended to stimulate thinking on how to design and implement monitoring and evaluation processes that strengthen accountability and learning, which will promote project, programme and strategy effectiveness.
Targeted Participants
This is meant for programme staff in NGO’s, Project Managers, government officers, policy makers and other involved in development projects.   
Duration
10 days
Training Objectives
By the end of the training the participants will;

  • Understand the basic principles underlying MEAL
  • Be able to design and implement MEAL strategies, systems, and frameworks
  • Develop and support the use of MEAL tools and practices in program development
  • Support the development of MEAL work pieces such as program baselines, mid-term reviews and end lines
  • Be equipped with an understanding of the major tools and best practices involved in MEAL
  • Be provided with effective rules of thumb and a framework to approach methodological issues in MEAL
  • Effectively collect data, ensure data quality management and analysis
  • Understand project reporting by using MEAL

 

Course Content

 1. Introduction Monitoring & Evaluation

  • M&E and the project/programme cycle
  • Importance of M&E
  • Purposes and uses of M&E
  • Identifying gaps in M&E
  • Barriers to effective M&E

2. Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning  (MEAL) overview

  • Introduction to MEAL
  • MEAL Components
  • Purposes and functions of MEAL
  • MEAL approach
  • How MEAL changes M&E
  • Challenges to MEAL

3. Frameworks and MEAL Cycle

  • Frameworks and approaches informing MEAL
  • The language used in MEAL
  • The MEAL cycle
  • Exploring key elements of a MEAL plan
  • Defining indicators
  • Designing, implementation and management of a MEAL framework

4. MEAL Planning and Budgeting
MEAL planning

  • Planning and budgeting of MEAL
  • Planning and Budgeting relationship.
  • Tools for planned monitoring and evaluation activities
  • How do I get started?- Practical’s and application
  • Identifying project/programme goals.
  • Identifying project/programme indicators and targets.
  • Selecting data collection methods and data sources for prioritized indicators in your MEAL plan
  • Decide upon your data analysis, quality assurance/validation, and management strategy.
  • Identify your strategy for reporting and disseminating data.

            MEAL Budgeting

  • Activities based MEAL budgeting
  • Components of the Budget
  • Exercise: MEAL Plan and corresponding budget

5.  Accountability and Learning

  • Meaning of accountability mean in practice
  • Aspects of accountability.
  • Importance of Accountability
  • Information sharing
  • Participation
  • Handling Complaints
  • Learning and its role
  • Exercise: Incorporating Accountability and Learning in Projects

6.  Baseline and evaluation design and management

  • The purpose and use of baselines and evaluations
  • Purpose and use of needs assessments, situation analysis,
  • Baselines, evaluations and real-time reviews
  • Importance of baseline for monitoring and evaluation
  • Steps in planning and undertaking baselines and evaluations

7.  Survey Planning and Implementation Types of surveys

  • The survey design and process
  • Methods of survey sampling and determining the Sample size
  • Data collection techniques and tools
  • Designing survey questionnaires
  • Pretesting research tools for Validity and Reliability
  • Conducting the survey
  • After the survey
  • Exercise: Planning for a survey

8.  MEAL Data Collection: Mobile Based Data Collection (ODK)

  • Introduction to mobile phone data collection
  • Advantages and challenges of Mobile Applications
  • Components of Open Data Kit (ODK)
  • Install ODK Collect into mobile devices
  • Designing and creating Forms
  • ODK Aggregate Server
  • Exercise: Mobile Based Data Collection using ODK

9.  Data Quality Management, Tabulation and graphical presentation of data (SPSS/Stata/R)
Data quality Management

  • Types of variables (Numerical, discrete variables, dummy variables,
  • Entering categorical and continuous data
  • Defining and labeling variables
  • Validation and Sorting variables
  • Transforming, recording and computing variables

      Tabulation and graphical presentation of data

  • Descriptive Statistics
  • Frequency Tables
  • Tables for categorical data
  • Graphs and charts
  • Exercise: Data Management, Graphing, and Tabulations

10. Data analysis and interpretation and use (SPSS/Stata/R)

  • Hypothesis testing
  • Comparing Means.
  • Regression and Correlation analysis
  • Interpreting the data
  • Introduction to analyzing qualitative data and qualitative data analysis software
  • Exercise: Data Analysis and interpret

11. Project reporting through MEAL

  • Use of MEAL data  in Reporting
  • Communication activities to partners and stakeholders
  • Lessons learned
  • Decisions making
  • Recap

For further inquiries, please contact us on details below:
Telephone:  +254733846186
Email: training@afriadevelopmentresources.org
The course will be conducted in English
Training Fee
Kenyan residents: Kshs 200,000/=                 International: USD 2,000/=
The course fee covers the course tuition, training materials, two break refreshments, lunch, and study visits. All participants will additionally cater for their, travel expenses, visa application, insurance, and other personal expenses.
Accommodation will be arranged on request. For reservations contact us on:
Email:training@africadevelopmentresources.org
Telephone; +254733846186

Mode of Payment
Payment should be made through electronic fund transfer to Africa Development Resources bank account 7 days before commencement of training.