WEEK 5: Understanding program indicators

Question 1

What is an indicator?

Answer 1

An indicator is a quantitative or qualitative factor that provides a simple and reliable means to measure achievement or to reflect the changes connected to a project/program.

Question 2

Describe Qualitative & quantitative indicators.

Answer 2

*Quantitative indicators are numeric and are presented as numbers or percentages.

*Qualitative indicators are descriptive observations and can be used to supplement the numbers and percentages provided by quantitative indicators.

Question 3

Describe the 5 different levels of indicators.

Answer 3

1. Inputs indicators: measure the specific resources that go into carrying out a project or program (for example, amount of funds allocated to the health sector annually).
2. Process indicators: reflect whether a program is being carried out as planned and how well program activities are being carried out.
3. Outputs indicators: measure the immediate results obtained by the program after implementing activities (for example, number of multivitamins distributed, or number of staff trained).
4. Outcome indicators: measure whether the outcome changed in the desired direction and whether this change signifies program “success” (for example, contraceptive prevalence rate or percentage of children U-5 who have received full immunization by age 5)
5. Impact indicators: refer to the long-term, cumulative effects of programs over time, beyond the immediate and direct effects on beneficiaries

Question 4

State some general guidelines for the selection/development of indicators include.

Answer 4

1. Select indicators requiring data that can realistically be collected with the resources available.
2. Select at least one or two indicators (ideally, from different data sources) per key activity or result.
3. Select at least one indicator for each core activity
4. Select no more than 8-10 indicators per area of significant program focus.
5. Use a mix of data collection sources whenever possible.

Question 5

What are the two general categories of data sources used in program monitoring and evaluation?

Answer 5

1. Routine data sourcesprovide data that are collected on a continuous basis, such as information that clinics collect on the patients utilizing their services.
   Data collection from routine sources is useful because it can provide information on a timely basis.
2. Non-routine data sourcesprovide data that are collected on a periodic basis, usually annually or less frequently.

Using non-routine data avoids the problem of incorrectly estimating the target populationwhen calculating coverage indicators. Another advantage is that both those using and those not using health facilitiesare included in thedata.

Non-routine data have two main limitations: collecting them is often expensive, andthis collectionisdone on an irregular basis. In order to make informed program decisions, program managers usually need to receive data at more frequent intervals than non-routine datacan accommodate.

Question 6

What is a performance framework?

Answer 6

A tool used to clearly define/describe the indicators that should be tracked to measure the progress and/or success of a program/project.
It explains how a program/project M&E works.

Question 7

Describe 6 components of an M&E Framework.

Answer 7

Objectives and outcomes
Indicators
Data sources and collection methods
Responsible parties
Frequency of data collection
Reporting and feedback mechanisms