EDIAIS :Conference papers

The paper is about ActionAid Bangladesh's recent work on setting indicators in tracking changes. Last year partner NGOs underwent exercise, with our facilitation from ActionAid Bangladesh, on setting indicators. Later we tried to consolidate & synthesize those so that

output indicators are useful for the managers at various vertical levels and
outcome indicators are for tracking changes, in the lives of the poor and the marginalized people, due to various interventions.
output indicators are now put into monitoring, with resultant corrective measures and
outcome indicators are put into participatory review and reflections process, throughout the year, in tracking changes. Such a review process is more of going for learning and fixing those learning in the rolling plans in the next round so that we do not slip out of context.

Consolidation and synthesis, of indicators, were made in four delivery lines, in the four program thrust areas: Livelihood and food rights, Quality education, Gender equity and Good governance.

Logical frame analysis is needed as managerial tool while
PRA is needed as empowerment/participation tool,

with resultant promotion of rights of the poor and the marginalized people from State agencies, market forces and civil society organizations (CSOs).

Some of the high lights are:

Indicators at Outputs/ Outcomes levels
Regional (country regions) level & country level by six strategic objectives zipped into four program thrust areas
Indicators by vertical levels: More in low levels and less in high levels
Indicators in terms of programs and campaigns: an on going challenge of blending

ActionAid Bangladesh, being part of ActionAid, active in many countries, has been working on poverty reduction in Bangladesh over the last two decades. It is now very evident that there is a gap between expectations and achievements. Such a gap between and foresight, in our efforts in reducing poverty, is an issue to think through. Our realization of limited success led us prioritizing experiential dimension of localized poverty .The poor in the grassroots are the experiential experts on poverty while the local partners know the nitty gritties of local players in the social drama. That provoked us to go for a shift from previous linear input -output-outcome -impact model. Learning taught us that reality may not always be linear.

There may be dark matters in all the stages specially in between output and outcome.

The next immediate challenge is putting the indicators into SUN software package and empowering the managers in taking quality timely decisions with trackable changes in the lives of the poor and the marginalised.

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