Parliamentary Capacity Building Workshop 29-31 May 2025 Cape Town
Parliamentary Capacity Building Workshop, 29-31 May 2025, Cape Town
Twende Mbele in collaboration with DPME, South Africa, organised a 3-day capacity building workshop to bolster and augment existing M&E capacities among Members of Parliament (MPs) and parliamentary researcher departments of Twende Mbele partner countries. This workshop aims to foster champions and cultivate an appreciation of the value of M&E evidence in informing public-sector planning, policymaking, and budgeting. The forum is part of Twende’s 2024-2026 approved work plan aimed at enhancing and advancing parliamentary oversight leveraging M&E. The interactive event was co-facilitated in English and French.
PURPOSE OF THE WORKSHOP
The purpose of the 3-day capacity building workshop was to build and augment existing M&E capacities among Members of Parliament (MPs) and Parliament Researchers of Twende Mbele member countries: Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Niger, South Africa and Uganda. This capacity building workshop aimed to foster champions and cultivate an appreciation of the value of M&E information in informing public sector planning, policymaking, budgeting and implementation processes. The workshop continued the Twende Mbele’s mission of improving oversight through M&E. The workshop was co-facilitated in English and French, and was interactive, bridging the gap between M&E theory and its practical application in the oversight functions of parliament.
The aim of the capacity building and peer-learning by Parliamentarians workshop was to:
- strengthen the demand for and use of evaluations among parliamentarians and parliamentary support staff.
- Enhance the capacities of parliamentarians and parliamentary support staff in M&E evidence production and use;
- Link evaluation practices to the oversight roles of parliamentarians;
- Integrate evaluation into planning and budget processes of parliament.
The three-day training covered the following thematic areas.
- The importance of M&E and building a culture of using evidence in oversight and accountability
- Evidence-based policy-making cycle and Medium-Term Development Plan
- Integrating evidence in planning, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation processes
- The importance of theory of change in measuring outputs, outcomes and impact, assumptions and risks in implementation of policy plans, strategies and programme
- The role of research and sources of empirical evidence in M&E processes
- How to use credible, reliable sources of data in problem diagnosis and decision-making
- Developing actionable recommendations and improvement plans
- Collaboration between parliamentary committees and key stakeholders
The training was a success and indeed assisted members of parliament to gain the required skills. Thus, the overwhelming majority (92.3%) of respondents to the post-training survey rated the workshop as very pertinent to them/their work. Further, most respondents found the training content to be timely and informative (76.9%), while almost everyone (92.3%) highlighted the need for a follow-up training. This is indicative of their perceived relevance of the training, curiosity to deepen their knowledge and or skill in evidence-use for parliamentary oversight, cry for additional support to fully grasp issues / techniques discussed and / or brought to their attention for the first time. It also speaks to the trust and confidence in the trainers’ individual and collective expertise and delivery styles.
Public Sector National Monitoring & Evaluation Policy Review Workshop in Uganda
Public Sector National Monitoring & Evaluation Policy Review Workshop
On the 28 April to 2nd May 2025, Twende Mbele was invited to the Public Sector National Monitoring & Evaluation Policy Review Workshop in Kampala, Uganda. This workshop was hosted by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), Unicef Uganda Office and CLEAR-AA. This workshop included group work, presentations and, question and answer session to interrogate ideas for improving the National Monitoring and Evaluation Policy (NMEP).
Some of the key highlights emerging from the workshop are:
– Policy should be clear deliberate on the interoperability data sharing protocols for the M&E systems.
– Policy should emphasise the integration of various sectors and sub-programmes into the National M&E system.
– Policy should emphasise the adoption of information systems that are compatible to A.I integration, especially for reporting, analysis, and interview levels.
– Policy should emphasise the need to capacitate Technical staff in basic use of ICTs
– Policy should propose rewards and sanctions for the non-use of the evaluation findings.
– Institutionalise evaluations for projects and programs across all levels of government.
– Encouraging Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and Local Government (LGs) to establish improvement and management plans in response to evaluations.
– Institutionalising learning feedback loops, where findings are formally discussed and actioned.
– Making evaluation findings a prerequisite for program continuation and/or expansion.
– Establishing formal communication strategies at the national and subnational level for communicating findings.
– Enacting the M&E Act.
– There is now a shift from Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) towards Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) across all levels of government.
– Main sources of funding includes 1)the Government of Uganda, 2)Donors Such as: 3ie, World Bank, UNDP, EU, UNICEF,CSOs, 3)Projects.
– The current proportion (5%) allocated for government M&E is not adequate. It was proposed the the proportions should be increased to 10-15%.
– Untimely disbursements of funds. It was proposed that M&E operationalisation should be ring-fenced funding so that the allocations are not easily “cut” or “diverted” to other priority areas.
Some of the key quotes emerging from the workshop includes:
1) “Do we need an M&E Act when we already have an M&E Policy. At what point can we say we need both?”
2) “How can the revised National Evaluation Policy better integrate LEARNING in a deliberate and intentional manner?”
3) “How do we align this policy to our own Regional frameworks (EAC Vision 2050) and AU Agenda 2063?”
4) “Should you undertake a regulatory impact assessment, which assesses how much resources allocated by governments into M&E before updating your National Monitoring and Evaluation Policy?”
New Twende Mbele Programme Manager
Twende Mbele appoints Dr Thina Nzo as Programme Manager
Twende Mbele is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Thina Nzo as the new Programme Manager, effective 1 January 2025. Launched in 2016, Twende Mbele is a Pan-African partnership between the governments of Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Niger, South Africa and Uganda, whose collective aim is jointly learning and sharing good practices regarding the use of monitoring and evaluative (M&E) evidence to strengthen the performance of government development plans, policies, programmes and projects.
Dr Nzo brings a wealth of experience and dynamism to Twende Mbele. With over 16 years of professional expertise, her career spans leadership roles in non-profits, academic institutions, and international organisations, where she has led multiple policy and research projects. Dr Nzo possesses extensive experience and skills working in various portfolios, including serving as a senior researcher, consultant, and programme/project manager. She has coordinated stakeholder engagements and lead policy advocacy reforms as a policy evaluation specialist.
Dr Nzo holds a PhD in African Studies from the University of Edinburgh and a Master’s in Local Policy and Politics from the University of Birmingham. Her passion lies in working with policymakers and development practitioners to leverage applied research and evaluation to influence and shape socio-economic development across the African continent effectively. Most recently, Dr. Nzo served as a Local Government Program Manager at the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI), University of the Witwatersrand. She is also a former Head of Public Policy for the Northern Cape African National Congress.
Twende Mbele is confident that Dr. Nzo’s strategic vision and commitment to fostering peer learning and innovative M&E practices will propel the programme to greater heights.
For inquiries, contact:
Parfait Kasongo, Communications Coordinator: [email protected]
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The 15th European Evaluation Bennial Conference 2024
The 15th European Evaluation Bennial Conference 2024 – Rimni, Italy
On the 23 – 27 September 2024, Twende Mbele attended the 15th European Evaluation Bennial Conference 2024. The theme of the conference was “Better Together: collaborative thought and action for better evaluation”, building upon the valuable feedback received following Copenhagen 2022 and from other previous events, the EES 2024 provided a new and even stronger opportunity to share, learn, and come together as a community.
The 2024 conference themes are reflective of a different approach to learning and sharing anchored on collaboration; the modalities combine old and trusted approaches with innovative ones. The programme was reflective of the facility and designed to ensure that the physical space is used in the best possible way to facilitate sharing and collaboration. The conference aimed to focus the European M&E agenda on younger and less often heard voices on the evaluation spectrum. The conference also invited EES TWGs and evaluation communities of practice to work with the EES in shaping sessions and strands and showcase new approaches and innovative collaborations in their fields of evaluation. Achieving these objectives the EES relied on the goodwill of European M&E community to embrace both collaboration and inclusion in the pursuit of a richer, more dynamic and impactful evaluation sector.
Twende Mbele hosted a panel discussion titled,“Moving Forward Together: The Peer-to-Peer Learning Collaboration Approach by Twende Mbele as Developmental Internationalism?”, to highlight experiences of Twende Mbele member nations in adopting peer-learning collaborations approach to co-build evaluative cultures across the public institutions in a bid to positively influence national development priorities and identify mechanisms that can improve such collaborations to advance the continental and international development goals.
The key research question the Twende Mbele panel was trying to answer was: how can Twende Mbele countries continue to collaboratively share, learn and innovate M&E practices and systems that contribute to these governments’ mutual facilitation of positive socio-economic change and political instability in the dynamic sub-Saharan Africa region?
The slide presentation can be found below:
The 3rd Tanzania MEL Week 2024
The 3rd Tanzania Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Week Conference 2024 – Zanzibar, Tanzania
On 17th to 20th September 2024 Twende Mbele attended the 3rd Tanzania MEL Week 2024. The theme of the conference was “Transforming Service Delivery with Technology-Driven Monitoring and Evaluation: Building a Culture of Evidence-Based Decision Making”
The conference was set to be a pivotal event that further advanced the practice and culture of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) within the Tanzania and across Africa. Building on the success and momentum of previous conferences, this event aimed at consolidating MEL practices, foster sustainable development, and support the decolonization of evaluation practices through local leadership and participatory approaches.
The event was testament to the Government of Tanzania’s commitment, in partnership with the Tanzania Evaluation Association (TanEA), to enhance M&E within public institutions and beyond. It served as a platform for stakeholders from various sectors to discuss, share ideas, and draw lessons on managing development programs and addressing the challenges of M&E in development initiatives. The conference recognized for its role in promoting an M&E culture within the government and among communities, advocated for the development of a culture that demands and uses evaluations, and showcases the best in tourism activities in Tanzania.
The conference covered a wide range of topics under the main theme: Transforming Service Delivery with Technology-Driven Monitoring and Evaluation: Building a Culture of Evidence-Based Decision Making.
The conference sub-themes were:
• Innovations and Embedding Technologies in MEL
• Strengthening demand and supply side MEL Capacities
• Evaluation and Accountability in Development
• Cascading SDGs, Regional, National Frameworks MEL, and Diversity and Social Inclusion Progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Investment, Collaboration and Partnerships for improving sector MEL systems
• Empowering Young and Emerging Evaluators for Future Development Impact
Twende Mbele was honored with hosting two session on:
1) Introducing Twende Mbele to the United Republic of Tanzania: Slide Presentation
2)
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