Project
INTRODUCTION
Project a large or major undertaking that has a start and end date, is
designed to achieve a goal by completing objectives and activities, and
includes a budget (IFAD, 2006).
Project planning involves a series of steps that determine how to achieve a
particular community or organizational goal or set of related goals. This goal
can be identified in a community plan or a strategic plan. Project plans can
also be based on community goals or action strategies developed through
community meetings and gatherings, tribal council or board meetings, or other
planning processes (Walsch, 2000)
Evaluation involves
assessing the strengths and weaknesses of programs, policies, personnel,
products, and organizations to improve their efficiency and effectiveness.
Project evaluation measures the efficiency and effectiveness of a project and
determines the level of achievement of the project objectives (Walsch, 2000).
An evaluation plan is the next key element for the successful
implementation and management of a project. An evaluation plan describes the
process and provides the tools to measure progress in implementing the project;
it also assesses how effectively the project addressed problems and achieved
its objectives.
Monitoring is the continuous collection of data on specified indicators to
assess for a development intervention (project, programme or policy) its
implementation in relation to activity schedules and expenditure of allocated
funds, and its progress and achievements in relation to its objectives. (Kusek
JZ, Rist RC 2004)
Components involved in project planning for result based
monitoring and evaluation of any project
Assess the existing readiness and capacity for monitoring and
evaluation. Review current
capacity within the organization and its partners which will be
responsible for project implementation, covering: technical skills, managerial
skills, existence and quality of data systems, available technology and
existing budgetary provision. Identify any barriers to Monitoring and
evaluation of the project such as a lack of political will, expertise or
experience. What other organizations such as universities, private
consultants or government agencies have the capacity to provide technical
assistance and/or training? (Rogers P 2009)
Risk Register, above everything else a project manager is a leader, and
one of the most important traits of leadership is to prepare for the
unexpected. Taking fast, decisive action when things go wrong is one
of the most important traits of a leader, and therefore a skill you need to
learn if you want to be a top notch project manager. The proper way to manage
risk is through the creation of a risk register. This fancy-sounding
word simply means a listing of the most important risks to the successful completion
of the project.
Procurement Plan, Many projects have sub-consultants, sub-contractors, and
suppliers. The project management plan should identify the following things:
What outside products and services are required. How they will be procured. How
their progress and quality will be monitored.
Establish the purpose and scope. Why is Monitoring and evaluation needed
and how comprehensive should the system be? What are national
requirements with regard to Monitoring and evaluation In particular, what
should be the scope and degree of rigor of the evaluation of final
project impact? Should the Monitoring and evaluation process be participatory?
In planning and implementing project Monitoring and evaluation it is
important to recognize the potential benefits of stakeholder
participation. There can be benefits from this at all stages of the project
cycle including monitoring and evaluation. . (Kusek JZ, Rist RC 2004)
Identify and agree with main stakeholders. The project’s outcomes and development
objectives Setting a development goal and the project purpose or expected
outcomes is essential in building a Monitoring and evaluation system. In
project design the specification of outputs, activities and inputs follows from
this, and the expectation that achievement of outcomes will contribute to the
higher level development goals provides the justification for the project.
In Monitoring and evaluation design, indicators, baselines
and targets (Rogers P 2009)
REFERENCES
IFAD (2006): ‘A Guide for Project M&E: Linking Project
Design, Annual Planning and M&E.’ Section 3 (August 2006).
International Fund for Agricultural Development at: www.ifad.org
Kusek JZ, Rist RC (2004) A Handbook for Development
Practitioners. Ten Steps to a Results-based Monitoring and Evaluation
System. The World Bank, Washington DC.
Rogers P (2009) Matching impact evaluation design to the
nature of the intervention and the purpose of the evaluation In:
Chambers R, Karlan D, Ravallion M, Rogers P
Walsch, A. (2000) Reader, Introduction to the LFA,
German Foundation for International Development (DSE), Berlin
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