Key issues of M&E in relation to
managing information projects,
products and services
Training of Trainer’s (ToT) workshop
Smart Toolkit: Monitoring and
Evaluation of Information
Projects, Products and Services
Entebbe, Uganda, 24-28 September 2012
Trends in development world
Challenges related to current
trends
• Increasing complexity & dynamism often
imply that:
– We don’t have all the answers all of the time;
– We don’t always know how best to acquire the
answers and;
– Often, we are unsure of what questions to ask.
The Power of Measuring Results
• If you do not measure results, you can not tell success from
failure
• If you cannot see success, you cannot
reward it
• If you cannot reward success, you are probably rewarding
failure
• If you cannot see success, you cannot learn from it
• If you cannot recognise failure, you cannot correct it
• If you can demonstrate results, you can win
public support
Adapted from Osborne & Gaebler, 1992
Subsequently..
• In order to enhance our capacity, individually
and collectively, to produce the results we truly
want we need to enhance our capacity to
LEARN which involves;
– “Seeking, acquiring and translating information
and knowledge into effective action.”
In relation to information….
• Like other projects, many information projects, products and
services have been in place for many years without
commensurate changes to levels of investment and without
proper planning and documentation
• M&E relate to the project’s assessment of progress, results,
and successes and failures
• M&E are often distinguished as relating to a continuous
process (monitoring) and interval led events (evaluation)
• Monitoring can assist in adapting your operational plan,
whilst evaluation can assist in adapting your strategic plan
• M&E is not only for external funding bodies but also for selfassessment and learning about successes and failures
Supporting role of M&E
• Identifying the actors and their roles and
responsibilities
• Determining the value base of the organisation
• Identifying areas where management and
practitioners can improve performance and
accountability
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Why an M&E System?
• Purpose – why do we want/need M&E:
– Accountability
– Strategic directions
– Operational management
– New knowledge generation
– Empowerment
Evaluation information is useful…
Strategy
 Whether we are doing the right things

Rationale/justification

Clear theory of change
Operation
 Whether we are doing things right

Effectiveness in achieving expected outcomes

Efficiency in optimizing resources

Client satisfaction
Learning
 Whether there are better ways of doing it

Alternatives

Best practices

Lessons learned
M&E Made Simple
• What
Has succeeded or failed?
• Why
Have we had success
or failure?
• So What
Are the implications for the
project?
• Now What
Actions will we now
take to make improvements?
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A Smart ToolKit Was
born to assist in
addressing a number
of the above
challenges
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What is the Smart toolkit about?
• The Smart Toolkit focuses on principles, practice and tools for
evaluating information projects, products and services from a
learning perspective.
• It is about self-evaluation and empowering doers to manage
their information projects better
• It looks at evaluation in the context of the project life cycle
Why the Smart toolkit?
• Increasing pressures to show results especially
outcomes and impacts of our initiatives –
Accountability
• Need to demonstrate transparency in management of
IPPS
• Learning for future better interventions
• But limited capacity – skills and knowledge in M&E of
IPPS
• Need for a guide – Toolkit with relevant options
Smart toolkit initiative
• For the past 11 yrs, CTA in collaboration with other development
agencies has been actively involved in developing and
promoting the use of methodologies for monitoring and
evaluating information products and services in an effort to
improve project management both in-house and among its
partners
• The Bonn workshop (October, 2001) was where the idea of the
toolkit came about, along with the term “Smart” (to emphasise
“best practice”)
Smart toolkit initiative
The challenge has been:
• How to make monitoring and evaluation (M&E) part of everyday
activities in the running of information projects
• How to adequately support and encourage the process even
within the lead institutions
• How to make learning effectively become part of the
institutions’ knowledge base
Smart toolkit initiative
• In 2005, CTA along with the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), the
International Institute for Communication and Development
(IICD) and a host of other institutions and individuals from
African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, EU, Canada, Sri
Lanka and the United States came together to produce the first
version of the toolkit
• In November 2009, a second version was published in response
the feedback of our users
• The French version of the toolkit was developed in 2010
Smart toolkit initiative
We have had a series of launches, sensitisation and trainings in West, East and
southern Africa, Pacific and the Caribbean; St. Lucia - November 2008; Namibia November 2009; South Africa (Sensitisation) – Sept 2010; Ghana for
sensitisation workshop – October 2010; West Africa Senegal - January 2011;
Uganda (sensitisation) – November 2011; Fiji - Feb 2012; Uganda (Training) Sept 2012.
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Smart toolkit initiative
• Given the level of enthusiasm and feedback, the Smart toolkit
has become more of a movement, see www.smarttoolkit.net
Smart toolkit website (www.smarttoolkit.net)
Smart toolkit – the context, process and tools of evaluation
with the guidelines (applications)
Structure of the Smart toolkit about
Content of the book
Users
Part 1: looks at information projects The Information Community
within the context of the project
management cycle - Pgs 1- 28
Part 2: The evaluation process - pgs DOERS/Practitioners – those who
29-64
develop/manage information
products and services
Part 3: The tools you can use to
plan, monitor and evaluate - pgs 65173
Part 4: Guidelines or applications of
the tools for selected information
products and services - pgs 175-292
The Information Community
DOERS/Practitioners – those who
develop/manage information
products and services
Strategies for increased Awareness
and Usability
• Sensitisation workshops
• Training workshops (practitioners, ToT)
• Side events or sessions during other seminars
and workshops
• Website www.smarttollkit.net, Facebook and
Twitter
• Follow up activities from Participants’ action
plans
Further information?
Please contact:
• Dr. Ibrahim Khadar, Head of Learning, Monitoring and
Evaluation Unit – CTA at khadar@cta.int
• Mr. Krishan Bheenick, Senior Programme Coordinator,
Knowledge Management, at bheenick@cta.int
• Sylvester Dickson Baguma, Principal Research Officer,
Quality Assurance, NARO at sdbaguma@naro.go.ug
• Karen Batjes, Consultant, at karen.batjes@gmail.com
Thank you for your attention!
Questions?
Reflections?
Alternative views?