Monitoring and Evaluation in the developing world: Finding alternative data gathering methods that work
Degree Name
MA in Sustainable Development
First Advisor
Karen Blanchard
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to acknowledge the challenges in creating data gathering and tracking systems in grassroots campaigns and NGO’s in developing countries. This process was meant to examine the elements of monitoring and evaluation in NGO Poraka Nasa located in Kumanovo, Macedonia. This NGO works with moderately to severely intellectually disabled adults through direct service delivery at a daily center. This study looked at the existing methods of evaluation, planning, challenges, and tried to place them in the context of service delivery. The challenges found in this process were that despite having existing reporting measures that were required by the Ministry of Labor, the majority of data was non-documented. Some challenges were found in the areas of individuals that could decide the amount of information that was important to pass on and as a default measure typically very little information was shared. Information on the function of the daily center and its administrative body was often given only on a question answer basis. The answers were different each time the question was asked. Part of the problem was a language barrier in asking for specific documents, also there appeared to be a cultural learned behavior of not giving exact answers. This research was performed using informal interview, observation, and document review onsite at Poraka Nasa. The result was to determine that despite a clearly successful daily center that showed excellent client results, most of the administration and board were undereducated for management and functioned solely on the direction of the reporting staff leaving possible issues of transparency and accountability. Also the staff was noted to be working under stressful conditions with two times the legal limit of clients for the space that they were given by the municipality. This presented a challenge of little time and even less willingness to spend time data gathering or generating systems to monitor the daily center program. The system devised was to use the media as the main point of accountability and video reporting to gather and share information. This research seeks to add to the existing body of knowledge in Monitoring and Evaluation methods in developing countries NGOs. This inquiry further hopes to add to the discussion of finding appropriate and effective Monitoring and Impact Evaluation methods for small NGO’s.
Disciplines
Other International and Area Studies
Recommended Citation
Coppola, Elizabeth J., "Monitoring and Evaluation in the developing world: Finding alternative data gathering methods that work" (2015). Capstone Collection. 2845.
https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/capstones/2845