1. POST MONITORING TAMPLET
Program Rationale and logic for Post Monitoring
This aspect of evaluation is often taken for granted by people running programs because they
assume that outsiders would have this knowledge. In fact it is a crucial aspect of building the
evidence base for effectiveness. Explain why you have chosen to tackle the issue in the way you
have.Describe the overall goal of the programi.e.whatyouare trying to achieve and why you think
your approachwill work. Draw on literature, previous experience and practice knowledge. Project
managementhas the taskof establishingsufficient controls over a project to ensure that it stays on
track towardsthe achievement of itssetobjectives. Project monitoring is an integral part of day-to-
day management. It provides information by which management can identify and solve
implementation problems, and assess progress within the project. The aim is to determine the
relevance and fulfilment of objectives, developmental efficiency, effectiveness, impact and
sustainability. An evaluation should provide information that is credible and useful, enabling the
incorporation of lessons learned into the decision-making process of both recipients and donors.
Description of the initiative/program
A full descriptionof the initiativeallows someone who was not involved to get a good idea of what
was done. Including the following:
• The issue and how it was addressed
• Overall goal and specific objectives of the initiative
• Who the initiative was aimed at?
• What services and activities took place?
• Who was involved in providing the services/activities?
• Involvement of other organisations and sectors
• Ways in which community people were involved
• Costs of the program (staff time in planning and implementation, other costs).
• If and how the initiative planned to tackle equity of access to services
Monitoring
Monitoring is the regular collection and analysis of information to track the implementation and
measure the performance of a project against its expected results.
Why monitor?
A project represents a set of promises that are made to stakeholders about what will be achieved
witha setof resourcesina giventimeframe.Monitoringprovidescrucial informationabout how the
project is performing, which helps decision makers and other stakeholders track how well the
'promises'are beingkept. Monitoringisapowerful management tool. It provides project managers

2. withinformationtotrackimplementation,sothattheycan identifywhateverobstaclesare impeding
the project's success as early as possible. It is a source of information for justifying changes in
managementstrategy, budgets, etc., otherwise known as adaptive management. When it is used
well,monitoringalsohelps to identify promising interventions early on which could be replicated.
Monitoring is also a tool for motivating the stakeholders, by generating a shared understanding of
the projectand itscontexts.The informationthatitprovidescanpromote accountability, credibility
and public confidence in the project. In this instance implementation is seen as a continuous
learning process where experience gathered is analysed and fed back into planning and updated
implementation approaches.
What is participatory evaluation?
Participatory evaluation seeks to engage key project stakeholders more actively in reflecting ans
assessingthe progressof theirprojectandin particular the achievement of results as well as taking
joint action out of evaluation findings. Any evaluation seeks to assess issues of effectiveness,
efficiency,impact,relevance andsustainabilityof the developmentintervention. These five aspects
are at timesreferredtoasevaluationcriteria. The table below is gives specific questions which the
five monitoring aspects seek to answer.
Table 1: Specific Issues covered by Evaluations
Evaluation Aspect What are we going to do?
1. Efficiency - To what degree did the outputs (services and products) result
from efficient use of financial, human and material resources?
- How do outputs compare with outputs? How best were
activitiesundertakenandcouldithave been done better, more
cheaply and more quickly?
2. Effectiveness - To what extenthave objectivesbeen achieved? Were activities
sufficient to achieve agreed objectives?
3. Relevance - Were the implemented activities in line with organisational
mandate or purpose of existence?
- Were the activitiesin line with primary stakeholders’ priorities
and needs?
- Should the project be changed, continued or terminated?
4. Sustainability - What are the chances that benefits/activities will continue, if
the project/ programme stopped supporting certain
interventions?
- Are beneficiariesable toaccessservicesontheirowninabsence
of the organisation or intervention?
- To what extentare resultantchangesamongdutybearers going
to last?
- How financiallysustainableis the organisation or intervention?
- Can the intervention be replicated elsewhere?
5. Impact - What have been the intended and unintended positive and
negative aspects of implementing intervention?

3. Evaluation differs from monitoring in three respects:
Timing, Focus and Level of Detail
Monitoring and evaluations are interactive and mutually supportive processes. Monitoring and
evaluation of development activities therefore provides government officials, development
managers,andcivil societywithbettermeansfor learning from past experience, improving service
delivery, planning and allocating resources, and demonstrating results as part of accountability to
key stakeholders.
In orderto fullyunderstandthe role of monitoringindevelopmentprojects,some revisionof project
planning and management is necessary.