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Chapter 7
Use of Monitoring and Evaluation
Results
Results of evaluations can be used in many ways:
1. Dissemination of the report
Disseminate of the report to various interested and
related parties that might use it. Potential users include: the funding
organization (for the program or evaluation), project managers and staff, board
members of the organization, partner organizations/interested community
groups and other stakeholders, the general public, and external resources
(researchers, consultants, professional agencies, etc.).
Apart from distributing the evaluation report
itself, common ways to disseminate evaluation information are through the
evaluation summaries, annual reports, bibliographies, thematic reports,
seminars, press releases, websites, newsletters, etc. The entire report should
be distributed to administrators and donors. The executive summary could be
distributed more widely, for example to other policy-making staff, political
bodies or others involved in similar programs.
2. Improvement of project/ program
performance
The evaluation report highlights project strength
and weaknesses and suggested solutions to major problems. While it is important
to know if the program is achieving its goals and objectives, it is also important
that the project manager and staff are able to use the results to plan
follow-up actions to further strengthen the program.
The project manager and staff should prepare an
action plan to implement follow-up activities. The action plan should have a
time line and should identify individuals responsible for carrying out the
planned activities. The implementation of the follow-up action plan needs to be
monitored and evaluated. This makes program evaluation, both implementation and
impact, an integral part of a process for continuous improvement.
3. Development of new
projects
One of the objectives of
evaluations is to feed into the next planning phases of the programming cycle
of the organization as well as to provide a baseline for future planning.
Findings of evaluations reflect the situation of the target group and highlight
follow up actions. Such recommendations could be used to design new projects or
interventions, or to further develop existing projects.
4. Policy development
Results of evaluations could be
discussed at regional or national levels through seminars or workshops to
discuss policy implications. Planners on the policy-level can use evaluation
results for decision-making.
If the evaluation is well done
and recommends policy changes, program managers can use it as a tool for
advocacy. Good evaluations forcefully demonstrate the potential beneficial
impact of suggested policy changes.
5. Advocacy to increase
support to the project
Evaluations can be used as a
tool to obtain further support for the program/project. By documenting what has
been achieved, evaluators help project leaders gain the support of government
officials, increase credibility in the community and raise funds from donors,
especially if the results of the evaluation affirm that the project goals
remain valid.
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