7.1 An Overview of Putting in Place the Necessary Capacities and Conditions

7.1.1 Capacity for People and Their Organisations

When asked why a project M&E system is not working, a common response is "poor" or "insufficient capacity". Capacity is "the ability of individuals and organisations to perform functions effectively, efficiently and in a sustainable manner".¹ According to most people, "capacity" means the human ability – knowledge and skills – to do a given task. A most common answer to inadequate capacity is "let’s send the M&E officer on a training course" where new knowledge can be heard and new skills can be practised. Although a training course can provide valuable input, every course has limitations. In practice, much capacity is built on the job through concrete experience. For an effective M&E system you need skilled people who can, between them, fulfil the M&E functions and tasks. Key tasks include: designing the general outline of the M&E system (see Section 3); setting up and operating supportive computerised systems (see 7.5); facilitating learning in reflective events (see Section 6); and managing the communication of M&E findings (see Section 6). Meeting capacity needs will require that you:

1. Acquire the right people by:

• hiring already trained people;
• training your staff (internally or via external courses);
• hiring external consultants for focused inputs.

2. Ensure capacity of good quality by:

• removing disincentives and introducing incentives for learning;
• being clear about what you expect;
• keeping track of staff performance through regular evaluations;
• outsourcing data verification;
• striving for continuity of staff;
• finding a highly qualified person to coordinate M&E.

3. Build capacity for M&E. Start by developing an M&E training plan for all stakeholders - and with them. This entails agreeing on who is expected to do what and assessing if they have the necessary skills and conditions. You can undertake training using a combination of these three options:

• external courses;
• internal courses, tailor-made for stakeholders and linked to the development of the M&E plan itself;
• on-the-job training/mentoring.

4. Invest in capacity for participatory M&E (PM&E). Work closely with project staff, implementing partner staff and primary stakeholders to identify what is needed to make PM&E work and to develop plans to fill capacity gaps. When working with consultants on PM&E, clearly define her/his responsibilities, hire the same consultant(s) to ensure consistency in approach and build relationships among stakeholders; also, include PM&E in the terms of reference (TOR) and discuss with each potential candidate how she/he sees PM&E.
   

7.1.2 Paying Attention to Incentives

Putting in place incentives for M&E means offering stimuli that encourage project managers, M&E officers and primary stakeholders to perceive the usefulness of M&E, not as a bureaucratic task, but as an opportunity to discuss problems openly, reflect critically and criticise constructively in order to learn what changes are needed to enhance impact. It involves implementing encouragements and removing disincentives.

When thinking about incentives, consider those you can put in place within the boundaries of the organisation, that is, without rocking the boat, and also those that might require structural changes to the way the project is organised and operated. Also consider whom they are meant to stimulate so that they engage with learning-oriented and participatory M&E. This will allow you to fine-tune incentives for particular groups.

Incentive systems should be equitable, applied in a timely manner, be compatible with the project’s principles and strategies, and be recognised as part of a project’s policy. Incentives need to be context specific and aimed at supporting sustainability of efforts. This is why financial incentives are undesirable in many contexts, as sustaining them beyond the life of the project would be unfeasible.

Good incentives for M&E are closely linked to general management efforts to improve overall project performance. Examples of common incentives include:

• clarity of M&E responsibility in job descriptions and work plans;
• appropriate salaries and other rewards, such as housing and vehicle use;
• support to carry out required project activities, such as making financial and other resources easily available;
• professional development for career advancement.

You do not have as much influence over incentives for implementing partners and primary stakeholders as you have for project staff. Yet it is crucial for them to be as motivated as project staff, when it comes to participatory learning-oriented M&E. See 7.3 for more ideas.

Incentives will change during the life of the project. Keep motivation high by changing incentives. They may vary per project phase as the M&E tasks and issues change and, in some cases, actions taken early on may prove to be incentives at a later stage. For example, in Ghana, potential applicants for project positions had to go through an intense selection process. On top of this, ministry staff that applied also had to be nominated by the head of their department. Because they knew they had passed a tough recruitment process, project staff, including those in M&E, held a high respect for each other’s professional skills and abilities.

7.1.3 Getting an Optimal Structure for M&E Responsibilities

Getting the basic structure for a project’s M&E functions and responsibilities right can avoid major communication bottlenecks, conflicts of power and interest, forgotten or duplicated tasks, and wasted efforts. This saves resources and headaches. Organising responsibilities means considering the most appropriate contribution for project staff, partner organisation staff and primary stakeholders – and how to link these.

M&E is part of every single person’s job, from the messenger to the project director. Monitoring is a daily and spontaneous activity. Yet it is important that M&E functions also have a clear position in the project structure, whether among project staff, with partners or among primary stakeholders. High visibility and clear positions of authority for those with M&E responsibilities can help link information to its use in decision-making.

To ensure clarity of M&E functions and tasks:

• define the M&E responsibilities of implementing partners and primary stakeholders;
• consider what staffing levels are appropriate for the set of M&E tasks and functions you need to fulfil;
• allocate clear levels of authority to M&E-related staff;
• ensure overlap between project management and M&E;
• use detailed job descriptions for each staff member to coordinate inputs.

All projects use consultants in some form, local or foreign, short-term or long-term, extending big responsibilities or small tasks. Ensure that:

• you are using them strategically for M&E development in ways that build local capacity and build on existing M&E forms;
• when contracting them, you are completely clear about what you expect them to add to the existing systems and expertise, by when and in what manner (particularly vis-à-vis primary stakeholders) they are expected to work;
• you are working with as much continuity of consultants as possible to minimise the need to reconcile conflicting advice.

7.1.4 Thinking through the Information System

In IFAD-supported projects, the quantity of information that is collected and needs to be shared justifies well thought-out information systems that store data and make data accessible to others. This is also vital for a participatory process. Documentation provides the foundation for interactive communication, transparency, consensus-building and continuity.

Storage of two types of information is needed – impact-related information to guide the project strategy and progress-related information to track operations. To store this range of information, from survey data to copies of contracts and correspondence, will probably require different information storage systems.

Computers can make a critical contribution to tracking and using data but are no panacea. Achieving impact certainly does not depend on computerising data. Information that needs to be shared can also be photocopied and circulated, with each recipient using a common filing system.

To set up a computerised information system, follow these steps:

1. Define what you want to store in the information system and for what purpose.
2. Define your basic network structure by analysing how, when and by whom the database will be used (see Figure 7-1 as an example of a network structure).
3. Identify how you plan to process the information, who will do it and what forms this will require.
4. Compare options for software and hardware (the network) and decide whether to invest in existing software or contract a specialist for tailor-made software.
5. With your preferred option in mind, undertake a more focused data management analysis.
6. Establish the formats needed for database entry.
7. Provide user training on the system, otherwise it might never get used optimally.
8. Adjust the system regularly by evaluating its use with the users.

7.1.5 Finances and Resources to Do the Job

Solid and systematic learning costs money. Financial resources are needed for the time people spend, for supporting information management systems, training, transport, and so forth.

Key items to include in the budget are:

• contracts for consultants/external expertise (fees and travel expenses);
• physical non-contractual investment costs;
• recurrent labour costs (permanent staff salaries, temporary support staff);
• focused labour inputs, such as technical assistance, TA (short or long term, national or international);
• training and study tours for M&E-related capacity-building;
• non-labour operational costs (e.g., stationery, meetings, allowances for primary stakeholders and project implementers, and external data such as maps).

While there are no fixed rules for this, M&E budgets range from 2% to 15% of all costs. In projects where stakeholders are exploring new ways of working with partners, M&E budgets are likely to be proportionally higher as more time is needed to reflect on what works. Note that each project clusters its M&E costs differently, according to the adopted approach.

Irrespective of how the M&E budget is calculated, it will always overlap to some degree with other project activities. Therefore, do not excessively detail the M&E budget. Much learning occurs through the normal interactions of project implementation. What is most important is to budget for the events, procedures and staff time that support project learning and reflection.

Participatory learning processes are more time intensive than those in which only a few people are involved. More time is needed to organise meetings with larger numbers of people and more diverse groups and to reach agreement on how to proceed with M&E or on what data mean. Consider these budget items for participatory M&E:

• specific training for staff in participatory techniques and participatory M&E;
• extra meetings with stakeholders for designing M&E;
• additional meetings for local-level analysis;
• short training workshops on key steps in designing M&E and specific elements such as indicators and methods (including using the logframe matrix).

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7.2 Human and Institutional Capacity

Two sets of skills are critical for M&E to be effective: that for dealing with diverse data and that for dealing with diverse people. But many more skills come into play. Table 7-1 lists key areas of M&E knowledge and skills to which each project should have access. As M&E officer or project director, you can use this as a checklist to know if you have the right mix of skills and understanding available among the project stakeholders.

Depending on the project’s size and resources, functions can be combined or be assigned to implementing partners, sub-contractors, primary stakeholders or project staff. No matter who has the competency, they must be available to the project and not duplicate efforts and not work in opposite directions (see Box 7-1).

Table 7-1. Capacities needed among project stakeholders for good M&E

7.2.2 Acquiring the Right People

As project director or coordinator of an M&E unit, you have three options to ensure you have enough of the right kind of capacity on hand.

1. Hire already trained people. This is ideal but very difficult for most projects to achieve. Few people are skilled in conventional M&E, let alone the type of participatory learning processes encouraged in this Guide, which asks for people to be creative, conceptually clear and good communicators. Hiring already trained people means being able to provide enough appropriate incentives to make – and keep – the job attractive (see 7.3).

2. Train the people you need. Training, on-the-job or through external courses, will always be necessary. Even the most trained M&E professional will need to upgrade skills and understanding. Primary stakeholders will need capacity-building to undertake their own M&E and contribute to the project’s. Field staff will require continual skill building as information needs in a project shift and new methods of data collection and analysis are required.

3. Hire external consultants for focused inputs. Consultants are a common source of M&E expertise. This is a relatively expensive option and does not contribute as much to local capacity-building but it is often the only alternative when local expertise is not available and time is short. Consultants are particularly necessary at project start-up when staff may not yet be hired and relationships with implementing partners are weak. The initial workload involves establishing management and M&E processes, staff recruitment, finalising the AWPB, defining reporting procedures, setting up information systems, and providing on-the-job training. To make the most of consultants requires clarity about their expected contribution (see 7.4).

Your personnel strategy will be a mix of these three options. If, as project director, you want to create a learning environment, then you are likely to:

• try to hire the best possible person to guide M&E efforts or seek such a person from among the implementing partners to take on that responsibility;
• seek focused inputs by consultants on specific issues where time and/or skills are lacking, for example, to develop a participatory M&E approach to stimulate self-evaluation among primary stakeholder groups;
• draw up a plan of ongoing M&E training for all stakeholders contributing to M&E.

7.2.3 Ensuring Capacity of Good Quality

"Capacity" is not only a question of sufficient numbers. Good quality is fundamental. Being able to recognise good quality M&E will help keep your learning efforts on track. Box 7-2 shows what good quality M&E meant for one project in India.

Remember that what is essential for one level of staff, with its specific responsibilities, may not be necessary at another level. For example, while you expect extension staff to be excellent communicators with primary stakeholders, the project statistician must be excellent at working with numbers. However, in projects where extension staff input field data, they must have several qualities.

Recognising good quality is one thing, but what can you do to ensure good quality M&E among the project and implementing partner staff? One Tanzanian project attempted this by changing its staff selection procedure to advertise positions outside the government, rather than only within. This offered more chance of finding someone with the right qualifications. In some Latin American countries, contestants for a management job in an IFAD-supported job participate in a training and selection process that includes a two to three day workshop. There they are observed discussing issues, how they deal with groups, make decisions, etc. The selection panel includes government staff, primary stakeholders, and experts. Section 7.3 deals with incentives as a way to ensure good quality.

Below are other suggestions for ensuring good quality.

1. Remove disincentives and introduce incentives for learning. Encourage project and partner organisation staff to be curious and open about learning by providing a range of incentives. Limit those disincentives that may keep them from sharing their mistakes and learning from them. See 7.3 for more on incentives.
2. Be clear about what you expect. Clarify the standards of the M&E capacity you expect and put procedures in place that make sure these standards are reached and maintained. Staff job descriptions (see Annex E) and performance reviews are key mechanisms.
3. Keep track of staff performance through regular evaluations. In most project documents, staff performance is assessed by the degree to which they implement project activities. But also assess what they have been learning from primary stakeholders and colleagues, what learning innovations they are initiating and how they are using any information they have collected.
4. Outsourcing verification of data. Any project can benefit from an external view on what is happening. One way to do this is to sub-contract an organisation periodically to check the quality of data and of data use. This will give you confidence in the methods being used to gather data and can provide additional guidance to project stakeholders on data quality. But avoid making it a policing exercise.
5. Ensuring continuity of staff. Continuity of staff is both very valuable and very difficult. By limiting the number of people who come and go during the project life, you can build a more consistent and less fragmented body of experience. A large part of keeping staff is offering the right incentives.
6. Find a highly qualified person to coordinate M&E. This can give them higher status vis-à-vis the rest of the team and makes it more likely that you have the kind of capacity you need at that level.

7.2.4 Building Capacity for Participatory M&E

Few appraisal reports detail how primary stakeholders should engage with M&E. Therefore, for projects working with participatory M&E (PM&E) there is also little clarity on the capacities needed by staff, by primary stakeholders and by consultants. For many projects that are still getting to grips with basic M&E, the idea of undertaking PM&E may appear overwhelming. While it does require careful thought (see Box 7-3), many small changes can be made that contribute to more interactive forms of learning.

Getting to Grips with the Implications of PM&E

Making M&E a learning process that extends beyond your project team means making M&E participatory. You will need to think through the many implications of including primary stakeholders actively in reflections on progress and impact, as well as in data collection, analysis, selection and updating of indicators, etc. (see Table 7-2).

For PM&E to be worthwhile, stakeholders – staff, implementing partners and primary stakeholders – must be able to participate meaningfully. This means that project and partner-organisation staff need skills in participatory facilitation techniques plus an appreciation of the importance of seeking other people’s views. Staff need to be committed to making participation happen. Good PM&E also means that primary stakeholders must have the conditions and understanding to make a significant contribution. To do PM&E well will inevitably require capacity-building for everyone.

Table 7-2. How participatory M&E differs from conventional M&E²

1. External courses. The most common courses are those provided in Europe or North America. Increasingly, however, regionally based courses are available. The advantages of external courses are the exchange with participants from other countries, the more focused/intensive use of time, the lower cost to send staff to an existing course rather than design your own training event, and the credibility overseas accreditation can add to a project’s M&E and incentives. The disadvantages are that external courses are not focused around project needs, the project M&E system cannot be created as one output of the training course, course material may not always be relevant, and a one-off training is never enough to build sustained understanding.
2. Internal courses. You can hire a consultant to deliver a training course for any of the stakeholder groups. The advantages are that internal courses: are relatively cost-effective if larger numbers of staff are trained, target project needs and skill levels serve to build a common language and provide understanding for all involved. Also, if the course is interactive, then you jointly develop elements of the M&E system en route. Disadvantages include: highly dependent on the quality of the consultant, more expensive and more time consuming if the training is integrated with the actual development of the M&E plan.
3. On-the-job training/mentoring. Most learning occurs through informal sharing of problems and solutions. You can formalise this approach to capacity-building by allocating time for key M&E stakeholders to consult with external M&E mentors. This can work as an incentive for staff, offers the option of timely and problem-focused advice, and allows for ideas that are fine-tuned to the project M&E system. However, finding these mentors may be difficult and they are unlikely to have ideas for all queries. Making such mentors available to primary stakeholders is equally important for their capacity development but may be even more difficult to organise. An alternative is to encourage and arrange for staff and stakeholders to interact with other projects that are more advanced in PM&E processes. The exchange-visit approach can be particularly successful for training primary stakeholders. Some on-the-job strategies can be simple. A project manager in Indonesia maintained a strict procedure of monitoring at monthly intervals as well as quarterly and annually. He used this as a means to train staff in systematic and standardised implementation. As soon as he was confident in their capacity, he would reduce the monitoring frequency to quarterly and half-yearly intervals, being aware that it did not really make sense to monitor at such high frequency.

• Everyone accepts and shares the mission statement.
• The organisational culture and institutional atmosphere encourages good performance.
• The history and traditions of the project and related organisations are respected and known for a focus on learning and improvement.
• There is a supportive, fair and inclusive leadership and management style.
• There is an attractive incentive and reward system, including performance-related incentive plans.
• There is a shared idea of promoting teamwork towards organisational goals.

• prize for "most innovative fieldworker of the month/year";
• study trips and training courses for staff;
• avoidance of staff retrenchment.

• review of project director’s performance by project staff;
• "downward accountability", that is reporting to primary stakeholders on progress with implementation and including them in decision making on strategic planning;
• "citizen’s jury" about project strategy (see Section 8).