By REBECCA MUSHOTA –
ZAMBIANS generally do not appreciate the value of monitoring and evaluation processes, an attitude which makes it difficult for the country to track progress of development projects, Finance Deputy Minister Christopher Mvunga has said.
Mr Mvunga said one of the challenges that Zambia had in view of monitoring and evaluation, was the lack of appreciation by many Zambians of the process
Mr Mvunga said this at the commemoration of 2015 as the International Year of Evaluation and the launch of the Zambia Monitoring and Evaluation Association (ZaMEA) in Lusaka yesterday.
He said the country had challenges in the monitoring and evaluation processes partly because of inadequate human capacity and inadequate management systems as well as a low appreciation of the process.
“Let me take this opportunity to therefore urge you ZaMEA to make the public aware of the importance of a strengthened monitoring and evaluation process.
“The process is an important management tool to track progress of developmental projects and collect evidence and information,”
Mr Mvunga said.
He said Government had taken measures to strengthen the process which was under the Ministry of National Planning.
Government had partnered with various agencies to upgrade the evaluation and monitoring aspects of Government sectors.
He said the process was important, especially as the country transitioned from the Millenium Development Goals to the Sustainable Development Goals.
United Nations Childrens Emergency Fund (UNICEF) officer-in-charge Shadrack Omol said the evaluation was an important tool in strengthening and supporting development results.
Mr Omol said the year of evaluation was important for helping build capacities for evaluation of development activities on a country level.
UNICEF would work with Zambia to enhance the process because it was acknowledged that national programmes should be informed by evidence locally generated evaluations rather than by donor ones.
ZaMEA chairperson Ian Membe said the task ahead for the association was huge but with partners such as Government and Unicef, Zambians would in time appreciate the importance of monitoring and evaluation at country level like they do at personal level.
Mr Membe said the current economic challenges could be an opportunity to improve the evaluation and monitoring procedures to take note of successes and failures of the country.