Step 5.4 Design the monitoring and evaluation framework
Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is essential not only to measure progress and determine bottlenecks and issues in the delivery of results of the NSDS.
- facilitates learning through data, information, and knowledge about the results, including bottlenecks and issues;
- clarifies and promotes accountability by way of recommendations to strengthen ownership, leadership, commitment, and initiative to deliver results;
- enables improvements that address bottlenecks and issues, adopt and optimize innovation, and ensure sustainability.
An effective M&E framework for the NSDS is anchored on a well-defined results framework and supported by a reliable M&E system. The M&E of the NSDS may be integrated with the existing M&E System in the NSS.
Concrete actions
- Elaborate the M&E policy – the rationale, objectives, milestones and outputs (e.g, reports, evaluations, etc.), guiding principles, description of mechanisms and methods, data/information source, minimum reporting frequency, and expectations from all stakeholders.
- Expand the results matrix by identifying the
- activity source of M&E data/information (e.g., monitoring/reporting form/system, survey, evaluation, meeting, field visit, etc.) for each indicator,
- frequency/time period of M&E data/information availability, and
- duty bearer or institutional M&E data source (aka ministry/agency or development partner with mandate or accountability to produce the data).
- Estimate costs of M&E activities and include them in the proposed NSDS financing plan and budget.
