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“Developing a web based monitoring and evaluation system” Crop Goat Project in Tanzania PGI and RMGPamela Pali, Harrison Rware, Carlos Quiros, Titus Karanja, Joseph Gatheru Mugo, Nicholas Ndiwa, Jane Poole 1 4th October 2012

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Integrating Dairy Goats and RootCrop Production for increasing Food, Nutrition and Income Security of Smallholder Farmers in Tanzania Canadian International Food Security Research Fund

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Background• 80% of the Tanzanian’s populations’ livelihoods are dependant on agriculture. 90% of households keep livestock with goats contributing second after cattle to income and human nutrition.• Despite this, the contribution of goats to meat and milk consumption and income is low; due to the low productivity of local breeds (low growth rates, low carcass weights (Chenyambuga et al., 2004), low milk production which is limited to feeding young goats.• Hence local breeds may not contribute effectively to poverty alleviation and improving food security among the rural poor people.

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Background• Poor nutrition of goats due to seasonal availability of feeds; natural pasture fed animals are unable to meet animal maintenance and production requirements (Mgheni et al., 1993)• Leading to low growth rates, low conception rates, high neonatal losses and animals easily succumb to diseases.• Strategies to improve nutrition for increased livestock productivity include the use of tested feed rations that include cassava leaves and sweet potato leaves and vines to target dry season feeding• Cassava and sweet potato are alternative protein and energy sources to conventional supplements (Ngi et al, 2006)

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Objectives• To improve the milk production potential of indigenous goats through crossbreeding, improved management and control of major diseases• To test and evaluate improved sweet potato and cassava varieties that have the dual purpose of improving food security and nutrition at household level and the development of locally available and cost effective rations for dairy goats• To investigate the livelihood strategies, production potential, and marketing possibilities of local goats and crops in the study areas• To analyse the impacts (productivity, environmental, gender and empowerment, food security and nutrition) of integrating improved goat breeds with sweet-potatoes and cassava into an agro-pastoral farming system

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Research Framework

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Objectives of M&E in the overall project1. To facilitate monitoring and learning from the project2. To implement a dual M&E system that includes the project and community M&E systems to ensure functioning feedback systems and democratic decision making by communities3. To determine the complementarity between project indicators and community indicators to facilitate the development of proxy indicators Research Questions?1. What are the incentives for partners especially local communities to participate in M&E?2. What are the implications for the M&E system design?3. Does this type of M&E improve communication within the project performance?

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Process of establishment Of the project M&E system 2. Tools from the M&E framework 3. Development of 1. Project M&E developed by the web based framework component M&E systemdeveloped by ILRI leaders and developed by ILRI stakeholders

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Snapshot of the M&E frameworkLevel of result Key results /Processes Indicators Level of data Tool to use When to collect Type of collection (group, data deliverable household /community /partners)Goals Increased household food and nutritional security Changes in individual dietary diversity scores for male adults, Housheold /Within HH Survey Start /End Baseline and from the interaction between root crops and dairy female adults and index child HH Impact goat at the farm level Changes in hosuehold Food consumption score and contribution Household HH Survey Start /End Assessment of goats, cassava and sweet potatoes to the food consumption Report score Changes in the number of months of indequate hosuehold food Household HH Survey /PRA Start /End provisioning (compared to national, and or regional avearges) tools Increased incomes from sales of goats, goat milk, Changes in hosuehold income and income managed by men and Household /Within HH Survey Start /End sweet potatoes and cassava products women HH Changes in contribution of goats, sweet potatoe and cassava to Household HH Survey hoseuhold income

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Process of development Of the community based M&E system 1. Train project 2. Development of 3. Implementing farmers on project farmers’ community monitoring objectives, indicators, democratic M&EEvaluation objectives baselines and targets system & Indicators

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Community based results from a group

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Operationalization of the M&E system 3.Web based •Component 2: •Component 1: monitoring •Establishment of the •Development of the community based project M&E framework and evaluation Monitoring and system evaluation system

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Operationalization of the web based systemIn deciding what types of web based system to use we explored issuesaround:• Development of the data collection sheets – How do we develop these in a participatory manner? – How do we ensure communities are collecting data that they will use? – How do these local communities use and interpret the data?• Data collection – Who collects the data? – How often? – Which option of data collection is most sustainable?• Data processing, quality control and feedback – Excel – Web interphase• Reflection – Who facilitates the reflection on the data? – How often? – When? – With what results?We also explored other private service providers to determine: – What M&E systems they provide? – Costs they provide these systems at? – Costs and flexibility involved in adaptation of the provided systems?

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Objective : Web based M&E system• To enable project implementers to measure and track indicators outlined in the M & E framework online• To enable stakeholders to track changes in the project management and outcomes online.• Online access by stakeholders to data that is collected and uploaded into the system and summaries generated by these data• Statistical summaries will facilitate reflection sessions with local communities to ensure democratic decision making about project progress

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Functions of the web system• Data collection and entry : initially by field level research assistants (Potential involvement of farmers and/or extension workers - sustainability)• Accessibility: of the system by the project and non project partners (Public) through a login system with differential user rights• Analysis: query building or automatic generation statistics at a click of the parameter• Feedback and learning: Generated statistics and reports are reported back to the livestock/breeder groups to ensure reflection & decision making on project progress• Not a Static system!! (Missing components to be integrated (EIA and Markets) & adaptation of system• The established web based M & E system can be customised to be used by other projects (in ILRI)

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Operationalization of the web system M&E framework developed Provide feedback to Capacity building of partners in farmer groups M&E Host system on a Partners develop website and share the M & E tools the system Tools organized and merged intoIncorporate partners comments one system, statistics generated on the statistics, programmer (which match the M&E frameworkcomplete the modules, test the indicators), codes determined , system with real data, train the field assistants MySQL database and web interface designed Validate the system Partners validate the (Tools and statistics statistics generated by generated) with real data the tools from the field Collect data to validate and test the system

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Management of the web systemData collection and entry to be conducted at the field level (field assistant/ farmers/ EO’s)Web administrator to be based at ILRI is responsible for aggregating data and quality controlAdministrator will give user rightsDifferential user rights for different project partners user names, password to login and access various interfaces.Need to ensure confidentiality of farmers’ personal information is maintained.

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Challenges of the web system• The system needs to provide timely flow of data and feedback to all project partners• Synchronization of tools used to collect M&E data in the field• Integrating regular data collection process• Hiring research assistants to collect data• Sustainable strategy for data collection and scale out mechanism for this strategy• In the absence of the web, what drives the decision making process?

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Example: breeding system and growth performance Indicator for breeding from the M&E framework Key results /Processes Indicators Level of data Tool to use When to collect collection (group, data household /community /partners) 1.1 Increased availability and rearing of cross bred Number of male and female farmers Housheolds / HH survey / Start, every year, goats owning /acquiring cross bred goats in Groups Inventories end of project target villages Extent of implementation of the Group breeding Data sheets Regular community breeding strategy (% change records in breed, record keeping, registration of does and bucks) Tool used to collect breeding dataCGP TANZANIA : BREEDING ACTIVITIES, GROWTH PERFORMANCEDISTRICT Kongwa DISICT CODE KW WARD VILLAGE IhandaDistrict District Village Name of the Sex of Dam Breed of the dam Sire Date of Type of Sex of kid Birth Kid Code Farmer farmer Number Number kidding kidding (s) weight Number (Twin, Triplets, Single)Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer x 1=Male 348 3 = Norwegian 1639 05/08/2012 1=Single 2=Female 3.0 18451Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer y 2=Female 466 3 = Norwegian 1639 28/07/2012 1=Single 2=Female 18452Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer z 2=Female 464 3 = Norwegian 01/09/2012 2=Twin 2=Female 3.0 18498Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer a 2=Female 464 3 = Norwegian 01/09/2012 2=Twin 1=Male 3.0 18499Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer b 1=Male 350 3 = Norwegian 422 11/08/2012 1=Single 1=Male 2.7 18500Kongwa KW Ihanda Farmer c 1=Male 417 2=Toggenburg (Exotic ‐ milk) 27/07/2012 1=Single 1=Male 2.5 18453Frequency of collecting information: Seasonaly

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Example for Monitoring and Evaluation – Sections of web interface generated by META

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Questions from the presentation (1) Documented by Edna Mutua - PGI• Q: Are you increasing workload for field staff? R: Either way, data collection has to be done. It is possible to use devices connected to the internet to enter data directly.• Q:Are there risks of losing collected data? R: This has not been experienced this far.• Q: Is it possible to use farmers for data collection? R: It is an option. Other options include using extension workers that have to be paid and using research assistants. Research assistants are most preferred because they have the ability to collect quality data. It may be difficult to use farmers for now due to challenges in use and access of the internet.• Q: Is it possible to enter data offline? R: It is, one can enter the data in excel then later send it to ILRI for uploading. The excel format also acts as the backup for online data.• Q: What is the sustainability strategy for data collection? R:The project will hire field officers to do data collections. Farmers will be engaged in keeping their own breeding records. The field officers will then put this information together and upload it.

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Questions from the presentation (2)• Q: What is the incentive for farmers to engage in data collection? R: This is a challenge. The team intends to disaggregate the kind of data that farmers can be requested to collect and what can be done by other project staff. Farmers can be involved in collecting data that gives them feedback on how their production is faring as this information is of great interest to them.• Q: Are there plans for up-scaling? R: Not yet.• Q: Has a cost benefit analysis been done on project? R: The costs can be identified. The project is sustainable because it uses locally available resources. It does not seek to introduce what the community has never done before. The community keeps goats, grows cassava and sweep potato. The project is working on encouraging farmers to cross breed their goats to improve productivity and use dried cassava and sweet potato vines as part of animal feeds in dry seasons. Initially, 107 farmers were given exotic goats for cross breeding and were expected to give the kids to other farmers that did not receive the exotic breeds so that the technology can diffuse in the community in sustainable fashion.• Q: Can the data collected in this system be used for conducting impact assessments? R: Yes, because the M&E system covers the project in between the baseline and end line stages.• Q: Is this M&E system compatible with PDAs? R: With understanding of how the PDA works the M&E team can develop a compatible application for PDAs.