USAID’s Approach to Monitoring Capacity Building Activities

Experiences, lessons learned, and best practices

Duane Muller, USAIDNovember 5, 2007

UNFCCC Experts Meeting on Capacity BuildingSt John’s, Antigua

USG commitment to Capacity Building

• Range of agencies and programs committed to capacity building for climate change

• Efforts by industry, states, local governments, universities, schools and NGOs

Types of assistance USAID provides

• technical assistance• capacity building & institutional strengthening• training and scholarships • food aid and disaster relief • infrastructure construction • small-enterprise loans • budget support • enterprise funds • credit guarantees

USAID’s Global Climate Change Program

Assistance to over 45 countries:

• Clean energy technology• Sustainable land use/ forestry• Adaptation to climate change

Capacity building=cross cutting

Monitoring & Evaluation

Complementary roles

Monitoring and Evaluation

MONITORING

• Clarify program objectives

• Link project activities to their resources/objectives

• Translate into measurable indicators/set targets

• Collect data on indicators

• Report on progress

EVALUATION

• Analyzes why and how intended results were/were not achieved

• Assesses contributions of activities to results

• Examines results not easily measured

• Explores unintended results

• Provides lessons learned/recommendations

Experiences with Monitoring

Traditional Project Monitoring vs.

Performance Monitoring

Traditional Project Monitoring

Tells us what is happening:

• Are project activities or tasks on schedule?

• Is spending consistent with spending plans?

“LIMITED FOCUS”

What does performance monitoring involve?

• Tools for measurement

• Assessment of current situation

Performance Baseline Performance Target

• Data collection methods

Performance Targets

Defines the specific, planned level of result to be

achieved for each indicator, within an explicit timeframe.

How much? Quantity

How good? Quality

When? Time

8 Steps to Monitoring

1) Indicators/Definitions

2) Data source

3) Method: data collection

4) Frequency: data collection

5) Responsibilities: acquiring data

6) Data analysis plans

7) Plans for evaluations

8) Plans for reporting/using performance information

Performance Indicators

What works and what doesn’t

Two types of Indicators

OUTPUT

Measures immediate things

Example:

Number of people trained

OUTCOME

Measures the impact

Example:

Number of tons of CO2

sequestered

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR UNIT TYPE

Quantity of greenhouse gas emissions, measured in metric tons CO2 equivalent, reduced or sequestered as a result of USG assistance in energy, industry, urban, and/or transport sectors

CO2 equivalent Outcome

Number of people trained in global climate change including UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, greenhouse gas inventories, mitigation, and adaptation analysis

persons Output

Number of laws, policies, agreements or regulations addressing climate change proposed, adopted, or implemented as a result of USG assistance

Policies/ agreements, etc.

Outcome

Characteristics of Good Performance Indicators

1) Valid

2) Reliable

3) Useful for Management

4) Adequate

5) Timely

6) Practical

4 steps to selecting performance indicators

1) Clarify the results statements

2) Develop a list of possible indicators

3) Assess each possible indicator

4) Select the “best” performance indicator

Performance Indicators can serve as useful tools

• Measure inputs, activities, outputs, outcomes and some impacts

• Can be integral to a monitoring system

• Communicate achievements

• Identify problems

• Serve as a management tool

Performance Indicators: Limitations

• Don’t capture what is going on at the local level

• Don’t take into account the enabling environment

• Broad indicators can be subjective

• Often have policy implications

Lessons Learned: Indicators

• Avoid broad statements

• Identify targets for change

• Study the activities & strategies

• Be inclusive

• Be selective

Foreign Assistance Reform

A New Strategic Framework for

Foreign Assistance

The Problem

• Foreign assistance has not been strategically focused

• Lack of systematic goal and subsequent indicators

• Inability to track funds and associated results centrally

Foreign Assistance Coordination and Tracking System (FACTS)

Pilot tested in 2007

Instrument for collecting standardized data • improve the coordination and efficiency

• increase transparency of assistance funds

• improving performance and accountability for results

Lessons learned• Feasible

• Requires resources and data, takes time, involves communication

Paris Declaration on AID Effectiveness

Taking action to strengthen ownership, alignment, harmonization, results and mutual

accountability of foreign aid.

Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (2005)

• Over 100 signatories

• Capacity development is an endogenous process

• Emphasis on indicators at the local level

In sum, we have we learned…

• Monitoring is complex

• Performance indicators can be useful tools, but there are limitations

• FACTS– Considerable resources– Time requirement– Constant dialogue/communication– Refinement with experience

Where do we go from here…..

• Is the Paris Declaration effective for capacity building monitoring and evaluation efforts?

• Should the ‘country driven approach’ be applied to capacity building monitoring and evaluation efforts?

For further information:

Duane Muller

USAID

EGAT/ESP/GCC

Tel 1-202-712-5304

Fax 1-202-216-3174

Email: dmuller@usaid.gov

Website: www.usaid.govKeyword: climate change