Integral Development Program of the Inter-Andean Valleys (2015-2018)” External Evaluation

Background / Purpose/objective

The project area in the municipalities of Yaco Luribay is located in the southern part of the La Paz County, in what is called the "Inter Andean Valleys", the valleys between the highlands / mountains and the lowlands. A plan for the period 2015-2019 was approved in 2014.

• In connection with the completion of the existing planning period in 2019 and plans for a continuation for the years 2020 and 2021, an external evaluation of the Bolivian firm "Ruta Critica" has been carried out.

The evaluation is commissioned by Mission Alliance in Bolivia (MANB) and the Terms of Reference and evaluation team is approved by the Mission Alliance in Norway.

Methodology

A combined methodology was applied, based on the appreciative inquiry, change theory and the most significant change. The method of evaluation was fundamentally qualitative, however it was combined with a quantitative method.

The application of the qualitative method was based on the use of raising and processing primary information (interviews, testimonies and focus groups) tools, seeking to identify and understand in greater depth the dynamics and particularities proper of the intervention.

It also included the revision of all the relevant documentation regarding the design and the implementation of the PIDESVI. With the quantitative method we aimed to identify and validate generalizable and representative conclusions from the evaluation, for that purpose surveys to producers, boys and girls, and teenagers were applied.

Additionally, a revision of the PIDESVI data base was performed and so it was with its technical records with the purpose of identifying the quantifiable information.

Key findings

Regarding the relevance of the PIDESVI, its design is relevant to the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as well as the regulations and public policies related to the issues involved, at a national and municipal levels. In an institutional level, the PIDESVI is aligned to the Institutional Strategic Plans of MAN-B.

It is evident that the Program is relevant and responds to the context and needs of the Municipalities of Luribay and Yaco's populations, based on a diaconal approach, seeking to improve their living conditions.

The implementation of the PIDESVI shows a good level of efficiency. The percentages of budget execution, denote an important capacity for execution and compliance of what has been programmed, highlighting the effort made by the counterparts of PIDESVI, which shows commitment and empowerment in the execution of the different projects promoted by MAN-B.

A positive aspect is the applied management model, which implies a direct work of the community, which has been constituted as a guarantee of efficient financial resources use.
Regarding the effectiveness, the results are different in each Project / Sector.

In general, it has been observed that, to a different extent, each product contributed to the fulfillment of the results and objectives defined in the intervention design. The contribution of each Project was as follows:

• On Education, the strengthening of pedagogical management has been achieved, which affects the performance of students, direct beneficiaries of these actions, as well as parents, educational councils and teachers, who transmit their pedagogically better developed knowledge.
• On Health, the conditions of health facilities have been improved, through the provision of adequate equipment, human resources strengthened in knowledge, skills and abilities that guarantee better quality care accompanied by healthy living practices by the community in general, as well as the implementation of safe water systems.
• On Local Organizational Management, it has helped local organizations to develop effective community development management by exercising justice and equity, an achievement reached through equipment and training, which strengthened the leadership of both men and women of local organizations.
• On Food Security and Production, productive improvements were achieved (yields and quality of agricultural products), for the benefit of families.
• On the area of Strengthening for Churches, the churches have been turned to the community, becoming managers of support to their community through the transmission of values.

The general objective of PIDESVI has been met since: i) living conditions for girls and boys were improved, as well as in the general population, contributing to create decent conditions for the teaching processes and access to health and safe water, ii) the opportunities to boost the economy of the intervention municipalities were increased and, iii) the role of men and women in social and human development has been strengthened.

On effects or impacts, the most significant changes are differentiated. On education there is an improvement in academic performance in students; on health an improvement in the quality of care that users receive; On local organizational management it has been achieved for women to assume awareness and active exercise of their rights by increasing their participation levels; on production and food security, local agricultural production was improved qualitatively and quantitatively, boosting local economies and making municipal management visible and efficient on support of productive development and; Finally, on the strengthening of churches, an openness to the community through service and the transmission of values has been promoted.

Regarding the sustainability, it can change and it depends on each person involved. Knowledge transmission processes seem to have good sustainability opportunities, since they have transformed, to some extent, the habits of the beneficiaries. Where sustainability can be more limited, is infrastructure and equipment, since the effective performance of care and maintenance actions depends on the will of a plurality of people.

As for empowerment, the actions developed have generated the commitment to grant counterparts. It is identified that, individually and collectively, the power to take decisions on behalf of the beneficiaries has been increased, making it a good practice to have focused the work on the guarantors of rights.

Recommendations

The main recommendations of the Evaluation are:

• It is important that, by signing agreements or commitments, the permanence of trained personnel is guaranteed for at least a certain period of time.
• It is important that the follow-up that is carried out guarantees an effective transfer of the documents of each project to new communal authorities.
• The built infrastructure must be evaluated, in order to design a sustainability strategy in case it may encounter any deterioration or operational problems.
• Ex-post monitoring and accompaniment must be carried out to implement the actions of productive projects, and to ensure their sustainability.
• A transition plan or strategy that defines a critical route and those responsible for continuing with the entire process must be designed.

Comments from the organisation

Mission Alliance
The evaluation team complies with the requirements expressed in the Terms of Reference and MA is satisfied with the way they have organized and executed the evaluation. The methodology they used was very appropriate to the characteristics of the project and the socioeconomic context of the area of action.

The “participatory and comprehensive” approach has allowed them to analyse the relationship of livelihoods, people, organizations and their actions for local community development. On the other hand, the method they applied was qualitative, with a very interesting quantitative combination that has allowed them to use tools for gathering and processing information from documents, data and experiences in the field.

Overall, MA/MANB considers that the external evaluation has been timely in the PIDESVI (project) execution stage and pertinent to analyse the achievements of the goals and the added value of MAN-B. The evaluation findings and recommendations have been highly relevant and been used as the basis for making the proposal for the 2-year extension and phase out of the project.

Digni
Digni consideres the evaluation work and report to be relevant, timely and meet evaluation standards. Digni has used the evaluation report to analyse and document results of the project. Digni’s assessment of the project’s results are presented in Digni’s report to Norad in 2019.

Digni is also pleased to note that the Mission Alliance in cooperation with MAN-B have made sure that the external evaluation was carried out well ahead the termination of the project, and have used the recommendations when planning for the last 2 years of the project (2020-2021), improving sustainability and continuity of change processes.