COLLABORATIVE MONITORING AND EVALUATION PRACTICES AND PERFORMANCE OF COUNTY FUNDED PROJECTS IN UASIN GISHU COUNTY, KENYA
Musyimi Musili Charles - Master of Project Monitoring and Evaluation, Post Graduate Student, Kenyatta University, Kenya
Dr. Alfayos Ondara - Lecturer, Department of Management Science, Kenyatta University, Kenya
ABSTRACT
Since the inception of county governments which were created under the Article Six and specified in 1st Schedule of the Constitution of Kenya, there has been low uptake of collaborative monitoring and evaluation of projects leading to delay in project implementation, unmet stakeholder expectations and unsatisfactory work. Uasin Gishu County has been lagging behind in execution of its proposed projects with such delays attributed to insufficient and unqualified personnel, inadequate budgetary allocation to support M&E function, poor project planning and monitoring, and lack of participation from numerous project stakeholders, to name a few. These challenges have affected the execution of collaborative M&E practices in the County. Due to this backdrop, the research attempted to establish factors affecting utilization of collaborative M&E practices on County funded projects in the County Government of Uasin Gishu. The main purpose of this inquiry was to assess the effects of technical expertise, cost implications, stakeholder involvement and the existence of policy framework in performance of projects financed by the County. The researcher used a descriptive research approach with a target populace of 41 County officials drawn from various departments inclusive of stakeholders. The researcher adopted simple random selection method in picking of all sample units. Most of the information sought was obtained using a structured tool self-administered to the respondents. Statistical software was adopted in synthesizing the data where percent’s, aggregated means as well as other statistical measures were generated, portrayed and displayed in tabular and diagrammatical forms. The study established that the level of expertise of project M&E staffs in the County was moderate; level of costs implied for project M&E was rated to be much high with a very high level of stakeholder involvement in projects M&E in the County. Technical expertise in utilization of collaborative M&E practices affected projects performance in the County to a moderate extent with policy frameworks in projects M&E having a moderate effect on project performance. Inadequate allocation of funds to implement collaborative M&E and M&E budget as a percent of development expenditure in every project was found to have effects on projects performance in Uasin Gishu County together with policy framework to great extents. The study concluded that cost implications contributed more to the increase of project performance in the County followed by technical expertise, policy frameworks and stakeholder involvement in that order. The study recommended that, to build effective and efficient collaborative monitoring and evaluation system, the County Government was required to commit its resources including personnel and financial, and develop policies that can support M&E function. For the County sponsored projects to realize full benefits, the project implementers should employ management staffs who have attained professional qualifications. The study recommends that resource utilization should be refocused to ensure that the projects are able to realize their intended benefits to the society. The M&E team should be composed of all stakeholders directly and indirectly affected by the county funded projects. To be relevant and feasible, project management need to meet various characteristics coming from broader corporate considerations, such as consistency with the project's long-term aims, compatibility with existing funds, controllability, and endorsement by the residence The study recommends that the policy framework should be realistic and address actual needs. Relevant analysis of projects and policy evaluations should be conducted highlighting the previous initiatives' outcomes, as well as the merits and flaws of their execution.