Challenges and Experiences in Developing Countries The case

Challenges and Experiences in Developing Countries: The case of Mexico Miguel Székely Undersecretary for Planning and Evaluation, Ministry of Social Development of Mexico

Monitoring and evaluation: Two tools for managing for development results

Three good reasons for having a monitoring and evaluation (M&E ) system • Feedback: whatever you are doing, do it better (improve development results) • Resource allocation: are resources being allocated to the highest impact activities? • Political gain: (i) if you are doing something right, let people know about it (ii) accountability

Implementation Results-Based M&E system Goal (Impacts) • Long-term, widespread improvement in society Outcomes • Intermediate effects of outputs on clients Outputs • Products and services produced Activities Inputs • Tasks personnel undertake to transform inputs to outputs • Financial, human, and material resources Impact Evaluation Permanent Monitoring and Evaluation

Five conditions for implementing a full M&E system for MDR 1. Institutionalize evaluation so that it is not an act of good will, but an obligation: • Evaluation must be a mandate by law • There must be an institution in charge of evaluating and monitoring Mexico: an old demand for transparency and accountability was addressed in 2000. With the law, the EVALUATION MARKET was created

Five conditions for implementing a full M&E system for MDR 2. You need money: good M&E systems are expensive • Typically between. 5% and 1% of total budget • Indivisibility problem in the case of small programs • Trade-off: more beneficiaries or more evaluation Mexico: Problem of annual vs multi-annual evaluations

Five conditions for implementing a full M&E system for MDR 3. Human capital • If you do not have it, you must “import” it while you create it. • The creation of the market is an incentive to invest in human capital Mexico: The case of IFPRI with Progresa

Five conditions for implementing a full M&E system for MDR 4. Technology & data: it is now available, but you must have it • If you do not have it, you must rent it or buy it • The creation of the market, and allowing for multiannual evaluations create the incentive to invest in technology and data Mexico: The case of the evaluation of the food support program

Five conditions for implementing a full M&E system for MDR 5. Political will and cultural change: M&E have their own risks • • • You have to “follow the leader” Beaurocrats have to buy into it Create the right incentives (benchmarks) Ideally, society will demand it You must realize that it is an investment with returns that do not come overnight • Tension between immediate benefits and piloting Mexico: Lack of data after someone has been “exposed”

Sequencing is VERY important 1 Institutionalize 2 Get $ 3 Human capital 4 Technology-data 5 Cultural change

Two key roles for donors 1. Triggering the process • Institutional Development Fund (IDF) by the WB • Technical assistance 2. International data bases reporting progress