Making Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation (PM&E) Work: Thirteen Vignettes From the Field

This paper reviews the experiences of an organisation called UPWARD in integrating participatory monitoring and evaluation in it's research and development process. The organisation aims to design monitoring and evaluation systems that research and development professionals can engage in jointly with users and also to explore ways of how monitoring and evaluation can be made into a participatory process. The paper highlights the importance of PM&E as a critical but often undervalued tool for successful agricultural research and development. Thirteen vignettes (case studies) are used to demonstrate UPWARD's experience in seeking to operationalise the PM&E approach through it's various field research and development projects. The paper illustrates the diversity of project experiences and illustrates the complexities that are involved. The paper concludes by affirming that there are no shortcuts to effective PM&E, it's a costly process and needs careful planning early on in the project cycle.