Project

Development of a Comprehensive Monitoring and Evaluation System for the Cash Transfer Programme for Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Kenya

Client

The UK Department of International Development (DFID) &
The Republic of Kenya, Office of the President and Ministry of Home Affairs Department of Children’s Services

Year

2008

Description

The Cash Transfer (CT) programme is designed to support the poorest households in Kenya that contain Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVCs). As a major backwash of the HIV epidemic in Kenya, the huge social problems resulting from the mortality phase of the epidemic are epitomized in the estimated 2.4 million OVCs in the country. While traditional extended family systems have coped remarkably well with this huge burden, the additional responsibilities of caring for OVCs are crippling for the poorest segments of Kenyan society. The central philosophy of CT is to maintain OVCs within their communities by assisting caregivers with direct and
regular injections of cash that is projected to improve the welfare of all children – OVC or not – who are contained within such households.

Kimetrica undertook a comprehensive review of the current monitoring & evaluation (M&E) processes and made recommendations to scale up programme management methods and M&E systems to ensure effective programme operations; and an independent M&E function that provides a check on programme operations and builds an evidence base. Kimetrica undertook the following tasks under this contract:

• A review of the project’s baseline data and its application to a longer-term independent M&E function, and any adjustments that could be made to optimise the contribution by this evaluation to developing an independent evidence base
• A thorough assessment of the current internal M&E system.
• An assessment of the Management Information System and its role in current M&E operations
• An assessment of what is proposed by the programme to strengthen the internal M&E system and determine what other inputs are required for a robust internal M&E system that informs operations as the programme moves to scale to enable regular progress and financial reports and for improvements to be made to operational efficiency
• An Assessment of the capacity of the Department of Children’s Services in implementing a cost-effective, affordable and proportional internal M&E system
• Budgeting exercise to explore the M&E budget implications of difference scale-up scenarios and assumptions
• Development of Terms of Reference (TOR) for additional technical assistance requirements to facilitate contracting of follow up work