‘Facing Mount Elgon,’ Mid-term Evaluation of the Peace and Rights Program, FPFK Kitale, Kenya

Background:
This evaluation was commissioned in cooperation between PYM Aid and FPFK Kitale Region. It is part of the five-year plan of the Program, and intends to support a mid-term review process. The evaluation is, thus, formative in nature and geared towards learning and the formation of utilization focused knowledge for the further strengthening of the Programs operations for the remaining couple of years, and possible extensions.

The basis for the evaluation assignment has been the construction of a knowledge-centred process that will i) help assess the effectiveness and relevance of the project, and ii) document lessons learnt in terms of intervention selection, project implementation and the challenges / risks related to the project activities so far. The usefulness of the evaluation results is geared towards the improvement of the design and future operations of the Program, as well as to assess past results in relation to set objectives. Also, the evaluation was expected to generate professional learning for Program staff. Specifically the terms of reference, see Appendix 5, tasked the evaluators to assess relevance and effectiveness while covering the following areas of the Peace and Rights Program:
• Appropriateness of the approach
• Capacity and management
• Partnerships
• Tools and guidelines.

Purpose/objective:
The overall objective of this midterm external evaluation is to generate knowledge from the experience that Peace and Rights Program has had over the past three years in implementing its peace building and human rights and indigenous rights promotion work. Knowledge such generated will be used to improve the design and working of the Program. This evaluation is envisaged to be a lesson learning and forward looking rather than purely an assessment of past results - although this would be an important aspect of the exercise.
The specific objectives will be
1. To assess the effectiveness, relevance and efficiency of the project
2. To document lessons learnt in term of intervention selection, project implementation and the challenges / risks related to the project activities so far.

Methodology:
The two consultants led the participatory process with the Peace and Rights team in Kitale. 25 days were allocated to the evaluation during the period November 2011 to February 2012, and 135 people have been engaged directly during the evaluation process. To explore the relevance and effectiveness of the Peace and Rights Program the evaluation has been designed as a listening and collaborative sense-making process, probing into how the Program relates to its context, to key stakeholders, and to best practice; and how results are observed, perceived and interpreted by the same.

To facilitate sound validity of empirical data and to build in triangulation, a mixed-methods approach has been used. In summary, the evaluation process has included eight sets of methods for the gathering of data and generation of knowledge:
1. Document and literature review
2. Semi-structured Interviews and focus group discussions
3. Most Significant Change
4. Workshops
5. Questionnaires
6. Observation
7. Using M&E data of the Peace and Rights Program
8. Report writing and feed-back sessions/written comments.

Key findings:
• The Peace and Rights Program has made an impact on the peace processes of Mount Elgon. Its unique analysis, strong research and adaptable approach have taken the Program on a previously untraveled road towards discovery of ethnic identity and history among the six dialects that make up the larger Sabaot group.
• The Peace and Rights Program has contributed to increased social cohesion and peaceful co-existence in the Mt. Elgon area.
• The Program has very intentionally worked to make the people engaged as staff, volunteers or committee members represent the ethnic diversity that characterize the context in which the Program is active. All dialects and ethnic groups considering the Mt. Elgon area their home are also found within the Program.
• The Peace and Rights Program Peace building practice, has adapted a holistic view of peace, as it has taken into account the journey that starts with the inner healing, moving to intra-group and further inter-group facilitation of restoring dignity and relationships.
• Through open and transparent dissemination of information the Program has built trust among all conflicting parties, as well as among other groups of the area.
• The Peace and Rights Program that was accepted a five-year funding period by PYM Aid in 2008 does not resemble the Program that this evaluation has engaged with. Major changes in direction and focus have occurred following a deeper analysis of the context.
• The Peace and Rights Program has a stable and enabling system of Governance, with strong sense of ownership from churches in Kitale FPFK region.
• The Peace and Rights Program has qualified and dedicated staff members that are well set on the route of becoming Peace practitioners of class.
• The set-up with Community Advocates support successful and meaningful engagement with communities.
• Peace and Rights Program’s system for M&E is working satisfactory, but need to become more consistent in promoting follow up of implemented activities and made more accessible to rights-holders of the targeted communities.
• Communication activities lack clear goals for follow-up and evaluation.
• The focus on dialogues targeting the elders’ structure of the Sabaot dialect groups has taken too much time and resources, leaving other parts of the Program to suffer. Follow-up and funds for other important work has been cancelled. Among the most critical findings is the feeling among the young men previously engaged with armed groups to have been excluded from the dialogues between the dialect groups.
• Another group that has been given less attention due to the focus on elders is the women. Even though the issues of gender awareness and women rights were mainstreamed in the dialogue process, women were essentially excluded.
• Peace and Rights Programme is a solid and respected actor for peace in the Mt. Elgon area. All parties engaged during this evaluation acknowledge the positive achievements of the Programme and ask that the Programme be continued.
• The Programme has come to focus much attention on the Ogiek/Ndorobo group and their status as indigenous people to the Mt. Elgon. Through a process of intra-group dialogue there has been reconciliation within the group, bringing together internally divided groups and “houses” separated by resettlement, acknowledging unity despite differences.

Recommendations:
1. Make new PD that clarifies the basis for the Program’s current theory of change and results framework.
2. Conflict analysis to be updated in consultation with stakeholders, continuously maintained and to guide all interventions of the Programme.
3. Before trying to replicate, or scaling up – sort out and consolidate activities so far, and document lessons learnt.
4. Adopt more gender aware approach to Peace building - disaggregate data of target groups – gender, age and ethnicity, and let that inform the language and practice of the Programme.
5. Re-affirm and clarify relation (expectations of) between the Programme and the FPFK churches of Kitale region, as well as the relation to the FPFK national office. This could be done through a “re-launching” event, following the final implementation of the recommendations of this report.
6. Define set of common definitions on key concepts and language to guide the work of the Programme to maintain consistent, ethical and clear implementation of analysis, activities and communication. Implement absolute zero tolerance for derogatory formulations of any of the conflicting parties or targeted group.
7. Spread internal capacity in Peace building – increase knowledge on Peace building generally among staff and volunteers, and explore funding to hire peace officer.
8. Follow through with investment on PMEL, and make it a system that supports internal and external accountability and learning. Allow it to make use of capacities of staff, community advocates, committee members and governors.
9. Bring Communication closer to activities and improve its plans, monitoring and evaluation.
10. Reconsider the abandonment of training community counselors to work with schools in the area. Possibly make this a separate project proposal to be run by or with other actor.
11. Mind the generational gap - stay close to the youth. Findings indicate strongly that the Programme need be very attentive to the intergenerational tensions, especially between elders and young men.
12. Take seriously the women and children by consciously deciding on how the Programme is to address their respective involvement and realization of rights.
13. In tune with Programme practice on community involvement, there is further need to contextualize tools and guidelines to make them relevant and understandable to Mt. Elgon audience. Utilize resources with deeper insight into African/Kenyan/Sabaot realities.
14. Spearhead Peace coordination and/or Network in the Mt. Elgon area.

Comments from the organisation:
• The project leader and the local staff expresses the evaluation was a very useful, participatory learning experience with a high academic standard, which has provided useful insight into the potential of further improvements of the program.
• Several of the recommendations are implemented into the plans for 2012 and 2013, whereas others; like development of a new PD, redo a conflict- and gender analysis, will be implemented if there will be a new project period from 2014.