Theory of Change Refinement:

Challenges, Opportunities, and

Lessons Learned

from CARE-Mali’s Harande

Program

Mara Russell, Director of Food Security, CARE-USA

TOPS Knowledge Sharing Meeting

Kampala, Uganda, 20-22 September 2016

1

Thursday, November 19th

2

Friday, November 20th

3

Food for Peace decision:

M&E Workshop postponed until later in the year pending

review of security situation

Baseline workshop in March

Carry-out Baseline study & other assessments as planned

Baseline workshop in Dakar

What to do?

4

USG voluntary evacuation /no re-entry

CARE – Continued plans for assessments:

IEE: Started – required completion

Gender Analysis

Formative Research

Youth Needs/Labor Market

Inclusive Value Chain Analysis

Climate Vulnerability/Capacity Assessment

Participatory Adaptive Agricultural Practices Study

Conflict Mapping

Political Economy Analysis

Census Study

Scoping Studies

How to move forward?

5

Proposed SOWs – Challenges:

Technical staff availability / hire

Meeting FFP / USAID Expectations:

Quality requirements

Purpose: Review TOC – not approaches

Inputs from USAID Resilience Center

Coordination with stakeholders

Need to focus on broader context

Assessments: Moving Forward

6

Implement Assessments:

M&E, Technical Staff, Consultants: lead

processes

Local staff – fully engaged, linked to

households on the ground

Process is in-depth & findings are detailed:

How to best utilize in program?

Assessments: Moving Forward

7

Organized meetings to review & determine

key top-line findings:

Presentations by Consultants, technical

staff, M&E

Data analysis translated to findings

Short overview of key results

Review implications for Theory of Change

Identify most important findings for each study-

and implications

Review of Findings

8

Review of Findings

9

Review & Refinement of Theory of Change

at M&E Workshop

Refinement of LogFrame, IPTT,

Indicators, Targets -> M&E

Refinement of Approaches

Refinement of Implementation Strategy

Share with project stakeholders and

review broader implications.

Application of Findings

10

Coordinate with FFP/USAID from the beginning

Scopes of Work:

Ensure Quality

Validate TOC and Assumptions

Coordinate with stakeholders & review broader context

Clarify Roles:

Technical Staff, Research, M&E, KM

Consultants: Focus study on what you need, not their

preferences

Don’t Assume that you Know!

What have we learned?

11

Most Interesting:

Directly learn about target group

All staff deeply understand TOC

Confirmed many assumptions

Importance to Job:

Clarity on changes needed

Awareness of what to measure

Include review of TOC in JD

Clarity to set indicator targets

Advantages of refinement period:

Don’t jump in- make changes first

Could set up enumeration database

Strong working relationship with

technical specialists

Tossa Rabilou,

Senior MEAL Manager

12

Most Interesting:

Directly learn about target group

Supported the Gender Analysis

Importance to Job:

Managed many field studies

Trained many enumerators

Worked closely with technical

specialists

Deep understanding of TOC

Advantages of Refinement Period:

Facilitates setting targets

Less disruptive to make changes

before program begins

Ladjibinoko Sidibe

Deputy MEAL Manager

13

Idriss Leko (DCOP) and Tech Leads

14

Most Interesting:

Deep learning about target areas and people

Deep understanding of TOC

Advantages:

Opportunity to build strong cohesive team

People gain a deep understanding of areas before

implementing

Implications for Job:

Hire people who are open & enthusiastic learners and

team players, rather than experts who do things their way

Need to be highly flexible and ready to change:

everything is always open to challenges

Idriss Leko (DCOP): Extended Refinement

15

Find out about reality on the ground from the people themselves,

not what people say about them

Gender integration in all analyses: focused on how conditions

impact women, not just including more women

Value chains: Face to face meetings with value chain players

opened up opportunities for them to support project

WASH: Opportunity to test proposal assumptions: far fewer water

points operating that stated in the proposal

Governance: Opportunity to learn about all technical aspects and

how approaches will work together with communities – bring back

data & make decisions together

Climate Change: Much more time and better basis for building

people’s capacity before going to the field

Helps in understanding the real road blocks (i.e. lack of access to

land) and sets in motion plans to address them rather than avoid

them

Technical Advisors

16

Thank You! Questions?