Institutional Evaluation

Evaluation of ACET's delivery of some project activities funded by the World Bank and monitoring and evaluation of all ACET's activities. Our objective in 2018 was to boost the capacity of the Pragram Management office to harness their ability to facilitate and coordinate processes required to meet project timelines and budget. To this end, a new Program manager has been recruited upon the exit of the former. Some key activities undertaken includes the design and implementation of a Project Management Plan for each project In addition, the position of a procurement manager and two procurement assistant have been allocated within ACET to ensure compliance to the World banks procurement system. During the reporting period Q2, ACET continued to undertake its regular reporting to key partners and donors including IDRC, MasterCard Foundation, BZH and the Government of the Netherlands. ACET continues to build and develop our strategic and result-oriented program management approach, in which programmatic budgets and project plans play a key role. We also interim reports to donors like IDRC, MasterCard Foundation, World Bank and the Government of the Netherlands in q3 2019 In q4, programs team continues to develop new programs that supports the strategic directions of ACET while managing our long-term goals. We also supported the design of a budget operating plan for incoming projects. Interim reports were prepared and sent to donors like IDRC, MasterCard Foundation, World Bank and the Government of the Netherlands to keep up with donor requirements and standards. The following reports were prepared and submitted to donors in q1: - MasterCard Foundation – 4th quarter report and expenditure statement - DFID- 1st full draft report - Government of Netherland- 4th quarter narrative and online (IATI) report - World Bank- 4th quarter grant interim report - DFID- Final full draft report. In Q2 2020 During the COVID-19 outbreak, it became increasingly important to ensure that project leaders are given the right support in terms of planning and follow-up. ACET’s portfolio management and M&E function therefore established an additional planning and progress monitoring tool, namely Project Implementation Plans (PIP). The PIPs are a continuous extension of the Project Management Plans that are developed by the project leads at the project initiation stage. The PIP provides information regarding: o Milestones, risks and risk mitigations o Human resource allocation o Detailed workplan for the next 3 months Following the submission of the PIP, ACET’s portfolio manager organises a team meeting inviting all project staff, HR, M&E and finance. The objectives are to facilitate peer learning and sharing of experiences across the different teams and project. It also provides an opportunity to identify areas for cross-fertilisation and thematic/programmatic synergising. We have also strengthened the weekly reporting by updating the procedures and the templates used. We currently have a structure in which each project lead meets with the Directors of Research and Engagement on a weekly basis and where updates to progress, challenges and action plans are discussed and noted. These project records are then shared monthly with the M&E officer who ensure that the information is both properly archived and fed into the upcoming progress reports. Report to donors is conducted quarterly, semi-annually and annually under donor specific reporting requirements and templates. A reporting calendar is managed by ACET’s M&E office to keep the organization abreast with the reporting status of projects. The following reports were prepared and submitted in the period: o MasterCard Foundation Q1 2020 Progress Report & Expenditure statement o World Bank Q1 Check-In (Jan-March 2020) o World Bank Q1 IFR o Narrative on IATI Quarterly Report (Q1 2020) Q3- ACET held three online monthly staff meetings this quarter. The weekly team meetings were also held to monitor progress of project. We have also begun work to revise the current theory of change and results framework along with operational KPIs. A revised version has been drafted and is currently under review by management. We met all donor reporting specifications and submitted timely reports to donors such as the World Bank, Mastercard Foundation, Open Society Foundation, OSIWA and the University of Geneva. Q4 2020 During this period, ACET finalized its new 2021-2025 strategy, which builds on lessons from our past and looks forward to a new economic landscape impacted by a global pandemic. The new strategy will focus over the next five years on helping African countries strengthen their transformation agendas for a stronger and more robust post-pandemic recovery. We will implement this strategy through five program areas: • Economic Management & Governance • Youth Employment & Skills • Private Sector Development • Regional integration • Gender Equality ACET will support growth with DEPTH across these program areas by deepening an approach—rooted in analysis, advice, advocacy, and partnerships—that has been proven effective over the past 12 years. At the same time, we will continue to pursue and strengthen our core products and activities, which cut across all program areas, including: the African Transformation Report, African Transformation Index, African Transformation Forum, and comparative country studies. Following management feedback of the first draft of the revised Theory of Change, the PMO was tasked with the development of programmatic TOC’s as aligned to the new ACET strategy. The team began the process of engaging project teams as well as an external consultant to offer expert advice and assess ACET’s capacity for M&E in the long-term. This exercise is expected to be completed in Q1 2021. ACET also met with a World Bank M&E specialist in the review of the current program’s M&E framework to discuss revisions to some PDO and IRI indicators. The proposed changes were submitted to the Bank for review. We met all donor reporting specifications and submitted timely reports to donors such as the World Bank, Mastercard Foundation, Open Society Foundation, OSIWA, the University of Geneva GIZ and McGovern to mention a few.. Q1 2021 Reporting: the team prepared three donor reports, including the 2020 Annual Report which is in the production process. This required data gathering for project workplans, project management plans and project implementation plans. Monitoring and Evaluation: We also continued our work to revise ACET’s Theory of Change as aligned to the five programmatic areas outlined in the strategy. This began with an assessment of the current M&E framework and was followed by working sessions with team leads to develop first drafts of an organizational TOC and three of five program TOCs (economic management, youth employment and skills, and regional integration). First drafts of workplans for these program areas have also been drafted. Q2 2021 The Program Management Office continues to support staff teams through planning, monitoring, and reporting. Reporting: The team prepared reports to donors in the likes of the World Bank, Government of Netherlands, MasterCard Foundation and OSIWA. Monitoring and Evaluation: We also continued our work to revise ACET’s Theory of Change as aligned to the five programmatic areas outlined in the strategy. First drafts of workplans for these program areas have also been drafted. Next steps include validation with management, and refinement of workplans. The exercise was scheduled for completion by Q1 but has been delayed due to unavailability of teams to fully engage in the process. Q3 2021 The Program Management Office continues to support staff teams through planning, monitoring, and reporting. Reporting: the team prepared three donor reports to the MasterCard Foundation, World Bank and the Government of Netherlands. Monitoring and Evaluation: Work on the Theory of Change has been finalized. The team is currently developing an organizational results framework that is feasible to track and measure. Annual Work Plan: The program management office finalized the ACET Work Plan for 2022, which was presented and approved by the Board on the 29th of October. TAP 2: We have also supported planning for the TAP2 program. ACET is revising the project approach, detailed activities and work plan for the program in preparation for kick-off Q1 2022.