Monitoring and evaluation in a changing world

15 November 2019

CREST Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Academic Programme Co-ordinator Dr Lauren Wildschut and Ms Nozipho Ngwabi (researcher) both attended the South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA) biennial conference held at Emperors Palace, Johannesburg from 21 – 25 October 2019. The theme of the conference was “Shaping Monitoring and Evaluation for a Sustainable Future’.

Dr Wildschut co-facilitated two world cafés which created a space for both local and international evaluators to contribute to the standardisation of competencies for evaluators and guidelines for commissioners and evaluators. Furthermore, she presented a paper on The South African evaluation education landscape: the present and the possible future. Conference attendees, in response to the paper, highlighted the need for greater capacity for M&E training in South African higher education institutions and the growing need to strengthen the regional evaluation training systems.

Ms Ngwabi participated as a current SAMEA board member and was involved in the design and preparation of the conference. She further chaired and facilitated the SAMEA emerging evaluator’s sessions and activities, which are part of the finalisation of a SAMEA programme around this topic.

CREST staff participated in the authors’ night which saw the launch of the CLEAR-AA publication, Evaluation Landscape in Africa. Ms Ngwabi and Dr Wildschut have co-authored a chapter in the book.

Based on the sessions and events designed, facilitated and attended by CREST staff, it was made clear that there is a growing need for M&E practitioners to keep up to date with the changing ecosystem of M&E. This will ensure that they contribute to Monitoring and Evaluation of sustainable interventions.