Implementing monitoring abnd evaluation at local government level: The case of a South African district municipality

Abstract

In recent years, monitoring and evaluation have been identified as critical management and planning instruments for the South African government. Today, monitoring and evaluation in government is implemented on the national level by the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, as well as on the provincial level by the various offices of the Premier. So far, monitoring and evaluation is not mandatory for local government, apart from its monitoring function provided by the Office of Planning and Management units. However, in line with the growing demand for results-based management, some local government bodies have piloted monitoring and evaluation units and systems situated in the offices directly under the supervision of the Municipal Manager or integrated into their Office of Strategic Planning and Management units. One of these municipalities is the Ilanga District Municipality. The municipality tried to establish a monitoring and evaluation unit, yet experienced a lack of capacity and staff turnover. As a result, the unit was dormant for several months. As part of an international development and cooperative governance support initiative, the municipality received additional support from a development advisor and actively started setting up the monitoring and evaluation unit. The purpose of this paper is to display a selected evaluation case in order to illustrate the challenges faced by the municipality as a result of this change, and to share the lessons learned during this process. It will become obvious that a guided change management process is needed for the implementation of monitoring and evaluation units in order to generate an understanding of the purpose of monitoring and evaluation as a strategic tool rather than control mechanism, as well as to establish transparent decision-making processes.