Vertical integration of monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) in adaptation policy and planning is important to connect top-down and bottom-up processes across global, national and local levels. MEL systems can help communicate adaptation progress and priorities between levels but current practices often overlook local contexts and actors. Effective vertical integration requires adapting MEL frameworks and indicators to local needs, strengthening linkages between levels through collaborative monitoring and evaluation, and ensuring evidence and learning are shared bidirectionally.

1. Vertical integration
of MEL in adaptation
policy & planning
Emilie Beauchamp
Lead, MEL for adaptation
IISD/ NAP Global Network
September 6th 2022

2. Agenda
• What is vertical integration?
• Why is vertical integration important?
• How can vertical integration be done?
• Challenges and solutions

3. The policy cycle occurs at multiple levels
Global
National
Local

4. How do these levels “talk” to each other?
Global
National
Local

5. Vertical integration…
…is the process of creating intentional
and strategic linkages between national
and sub-national adaptation planning,
implementation, and monitoring,
evaluation & learning (MEL).
…aims to connect top-down and bottom-
up processes, systems and actions.
…is not a single step!

6. MEL & MRV systems help to communicate
across the multiple levels of policy
Global
National
Local

7. MEL & MRV systems
MEL
MRV
MEL:
• Includes reporting &
communications
• Sometimes include
verification
MRV:
• Focuses on quantitative,
global measures
• One-sided reporting

8. MEL & MRV systems
Monitoring
Evaluation
Learning
Measurement
Reporting &
Comms
Verification
What M+E+L entails:
• Monitoring (qual & quant)
• Assessment of progress: evaluating
outcome and impact results
• Understanding how changes occurred
• Providing mutual accountability and
transparency
Reporting &
Comms
Verification
Reporting &
Comms
Verification
Reporting &
Comms
Verification

9. - Impact & effectiveness: adaptation is
contextual… so what does resilience mean?
Whose resilience has been affected?
- Equity: integrating local voices and actors in the
policies that affect them
- Agency & justice: local, indigenous and traditional
knowledge offers routes to sustainability
What do we want to MEL for adaptation policy ?

10. MEL is a social undertaking: it
can reinforce or confront
societal values and social
dynamics such as power and
legitimacy.

11. Vertical integration in the NAP process
Check out data on NAP Trends:
https://trends.napglobalnetwork.org

12. MEL in the NAP process
Check out data on NAP Trends:
https://trends.napglobalnetwork.org
• M&E tends to rely on external and technical
experts
• Current M&E practices don’t include local
actors - indicators do not reflect local inputs
• People responsible for analysis and
aggregation rarely understand local contexts
• Feedback and dissemination of results
downwards is often forgotten

13. No one-size fits all approach
Adaptation is context-
specific (country, sector,
region, social groups and
ecosystems)
There is no global
adaptation metric to
measure success
Multiple compounding
factors contribute to
adaptation results
Evaluating the success of an
adaptation measure takes a
long time

14. Each country has different
policy systems – and different
degrees of devolution
• Levels of devolution / decentralisation are
linked to the principle of subsidiarity
• Devolution can include different scales of
decision-making, funding and governance
responsibilities
• Devolution is particularly important when
considering the localised nature of
adaptation
• Opportunities for vertical integration of
planning and MEL in all countries

15. Vertical integration
considerations across
different stages
• Planning
• Implementation
• Monitoring
• Evaluation
• Learning
https://napglobalnetwork.org/resource/snapshot-developing-capacity-sub-national-adaptation-action-republic-sudan/

16. • Establish clear objectives – for
the policy, and the MEL system
(theories of change)
• Start simple – pilot then scale up
• Build on existing systems, data
and planning cycles
Planning considerations

17. • Need to priorities actions and activities –
transparently
• Establish a mandate for the MEL system
• Think of complementary capacities between
actors, systems & data
• MEL occurs at all stages of implementation –
when works best?
Implementation considerations

18. • Work with different types of local actors to
access data and knowledge
• Collaborate for other international actors to
get the full (data) picture
• Use tools that are appropriate for each type
of actors
• Disaggregate data for collecting & analysis
• Leverage technologies (e.g.: platforms,
geospatial)
Monitoring considerations
https://letsrespondtoolkit.org/

19. • Keeping knowledge - work with local
and national people
• Devolve analysis whenever possible
• Provide practical guidance for
collection – and for analysis
• Work with civil society and research
actors to build capacities
• Document what worked – and what
did not work – and why
Evaluation considerations

20. • Develop a two-way learning and
communication strategy from onset
• Work with civil society and research actors to
accelerate learning
• Ensure evidence reaches those who make
decisions – across levels
Learning considerations
Photo: Emefa Toklo, Lensational trainee, Ghana 2021.

21. The Paris Agreement established the global goal on
adaptation in 2015 to
• Bring adaptation on a parity with mitigation;
• Increase visibility of adaptation actions and needs.
COP26 established the Glasgow-Sharm el-Sheikh work
programme to take place in 2022-23
Countries must be able to assess and communicate
their adaptation progress and priorities using the best
available evidence/science.
Article 7.1 of the Paris Agreement
states:
“Parties hereby establish the global
goal on adaptation of enhancing
adaptive capacity, strengthening
resilience and reducing vulnerability
to climate change, with a view to
contributing to sustainable
development and ensuring an
adequate adaptation response in
the context of the temperature goal
referred to in Article 2.”
The global goal on adaptation: linking
national priorities to the global ambitions

22. Example of vertically
integrated MEL
frameworks

23. Example of vertically integrated MEL framework: Tracking
Adaptation & Monitoring Development
An evaluative framework for assessing the effectiveness of
adaptation actions in the frame climate risks to sustainable
development
• Adaptation as the ability to live and thrive in the face of
climate risks
• Can be applied at all levels – international to local, and
across sectors
• TAMD can be used as a starting point or template for
developing national adaptation evaluation frameworks
tailored for different country contexts.
• Used at project and national levels in Cambodia, Kenya,
Mali, Senegal, Tanzania, Zanzibar (…)
https://www.iied.org/tracking-adaptation-measuring-development-tamd

24. Example of vertically integrated MEL framework: Tracking
Adaptation & Monitoring Development
• Going beyond indicators to measure
processes, outcome and impact
indicators across scales
• Two tracks: measuring processes &
measuring outcomes for resilience
• TAMD is flexible & non-prescriptive
– framework works at all levels
• Offers methodology for suggested
indicators
• Assessing contribution, not
attribution

25. The Devolved Climate Finance (DCF) mechanism
https://www.iied.org/decentralising-climate-funds-mali-senegal https://pubs.iied.org/pdfs/G04424.pdf

27. Track 2
Development & adaptation performance
Vulnerability/resilience, adaptation, wellbeing indicators
Track 1
Adaptation & CRM processes
Institutional indicators, assessments of practices
2
3
1
4
5
Climate
data
TAMD: linking local outcomes and national systems

28. A look at an institutional scoreard
Supported by methodological notes available for download at http://www.iied.org/tracking-adaptation-measuring-development

29. Example of data visualization and analysis
From Brooks et al. 2013; Anderson & Fisher, 2018..

30. Successes
• Evidence integrated in communal /
local adaptation plans
• Citizen assemblies used for
accountability
• Understanding of which
investment worked best for whom
• Community of practice between
countries remains
Limits
• Implemented with project
assistance – what happened after?
• New commissioners
• Lack of budgets
• Too complicated
• Did not reach integration in high
level decisions
• Lack of transferable learning
globally

31. • Important to adapt indicators – both for processes and outcomes - to be
meaningful and inspire progress
• Social change takes time to unfold… Many challenges, but changes do occur.
Think of how to assess pathways for impacts!
• Tensions between project and long-term approach need to be thought from
onset, including linkages between local and national.
• Using methods accessible for local governments (e.g. scorecards) can lessen
adaptation costs by informing government decisions in climate planning and
climate risk
Lessons for the vertical integration of MEL in
adaptation policy & planning

32. Group discussion

33. Group discussion
From your experience, discuss over
the next 30 minutes:
Linking levels
• What planning (and M&E) mechanisms already exist to
facilitate linkages between national and sub-national
planning processes? How can these be leveraged for the
M&E processes?
Local integration methods
• What approaches are currently used at the lowest levels
of government for M&E of adaptation?
• How are the voices of local communities integrated in
M&E and planning exercises?
National integration
• Who and how is data being synthesized, analysed and
aggregated at the national level?
• Who and how it is being shared back?
=> What is the most crucial linkage to be done, which is
currently missing in your context?

34. Closing thoughts…
MEL is critical for
vertical integration – it
represents the
systems through
which evidence gets
communicated
•Photo caption
Involving local
actors and contexts
in vertically
integrated MEL is
essential for
successful
adaptation
MEL involves a
series of systems –
methods, tools,
people – that defines
roles,
responsibilities and
relationships
I had thought of
something else

35. Thank you!
Email: info@napglobalnetwork.org
Website: napglobalnetwork.org