MONITORING & EVALUATION PRACTICES AND PERFORMANCE OF COUNTY FUNDED HEALTH PROJECTS IN MOMBASA COUNTY, KENYA
MONITORING & EVALUATION PRACTICES AND PERFORMANCE OF COUNTY FUNDED HEALTH PROJECTS IN MOMBASA COUNTY, KENYA
June Mathei Makau - Masters Student, Kenyatta University, Kenya
Dr. Francis K. Kiarie - Department of Management Science, Kenyatta University, Kenya
ABSTRACT
In so far as they promote equitable economic growth and sustainable development, county-funded health programs have a positive impact on the county's economic and social development. The monitoring and evaluation of health projects, particularly in the County governments are not completed on time despite significant resources allocated to their implementation and despite the fact that these projects significantly improve the lives of community members, necessitating an intervention. According to the literature currently available on County Integrated Development Plans, Mombasa County has a high number of health initiatives that have been started since 2014 and an equivalent number of these projects that have stalled or failed completely. The main cause of this stalling or failure has been posited as the absence of a system for monitoring and providing feedback on the projects' implementation and development. A monitoring and evaluation system can offer an intervention. Therefore, the goal of this study is to ascertain how monitoring and evaluation procedures affect the effectiveness of county-funded health projects in Mombasa County. The study’s specific objective is to ascertain how the effectiveness of county-funded health projects in Mombasa County is affected by stakeholder participation. Cross-sectional research design was used for the study. The target population, and hence the unit of analysis of the study were 32 county-health projects in Mombasa County. Through stratified random sampling technique, a sample of 102 respondents was selected. The sample respondents comprised mainly key members of project implementation committee. The study was anchored on stakeholder theory and program theory respectively. Primary data for the study were collected using semi-structured questionnaires and applied pick-and-drop procedure. Cronbach's alpha testing was applied to test for reliability of the data collection instrument. Further, both descriptive and inferential statistical data analysis were carried out. For descriptive statistical analysis, findings were presented using tables and graphs as appropriate. Ordinary Least Squares Diagnostic tests, were carried out before the multiple regression modelling. Cronbach alpha coefficient above the threshold of 0.7 was obtained for all the explanatory variables of the study. This implied reliability of the data collection instrument. Results from the multiple regression model showed that resource allocation was statistically significant at α = 0.05 level of significance. More specifically, stakeholder involvement was found to have a predictive power on County -health projects stakeholder involvement (β = 0.438, t = 2.201, α = 0.035). Drawing from the study findings, it is concluded that stakeholder involvement posited predictor variable for county-health projects’ performance is statistically significant and sufficient for such project management decision making. Further, and arising from the findings, the study recommends that emphasis and efforts be made on robust stakeholder involvement for better performance of such projects.
