Monitoring Evaluation Accountability & Learning

Monitoring Evaluation Accountability & Learning

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Fajardo, Sara A.

Monitoring Evaluation Accountability & Learning

MEAL—Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning—is a CRS core competency that is pivotal to the design and implementation of high-impact programs.

About the Program

Foster Inclusion, Equity, and Accountability

MEAL—Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning—is a CRS core competency that is pivotal to the design and implementation of high-impact programs.

Our Impact

Global Results

Introduced in 2020, CRS Global Results demonstrate how each program, country and region contributes to the CRS Vision 2030 strategy for transformational change at scale. These results inform the agency about the effectiveness of our work so that we can ensure impactful change at scale, demonstrate the agency’s ability to save and change lives, and reflect how the Vision 2030 strategy contributes to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Participant & Service Delivery Indicators (PSDI)

Accurate data on the services that are delivered to project participants is essential to gauging how projects and emergency responses are meeting their commitments to the people they serve. PSDI allows CRS to estimate the annual reach of ongoing activities. This data can be viewed at a global level to see trends over time, or at a project level to understand how many project participants receive CRS services each year.

Breakdown of total participants by region graphic.
Breakdown of Total Participants by Region: LACRO 2m, EMECA 2M, WARO 32M, CARO 67M, SARO 10M, EARO 23M, ASIA 6M.

MEAL Policies and Procedures

Monitoring
CRS’s MEAL Policies and Procedures for monitoring require that “CRS staff engage with our partners to collect, analyze, reflect upon and utilize accurate monitoring data on a regular basis to be responsive to community feedback, meet donor requirements, and to maintain high program quality.”
Evaluation
CRS’s MEAL Policies and Procedures require that “CRS staff engage with our partners to conduct utilization-focused evaluations that assess relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability in accordance with donor requirements, demonstrate a commitment to working with integrity and respect for people, and promote community participation.”
Accountability
CRS integrates accountability measures into MEAL systems by giving greater voice to project participants and other community members in project design and ongoing decision-making. CRS is also accountable to project participants when it comes to protecting their personal information, balancing the right to be counted with the right to privacy and security.
Learning
As an agency, CRS strives to engage with our partners to learn from program experience and knowledge, as well as industry good practice, to continually improve the quality of our work and the benefit to the people we serve. Country programs are encouraged to start with small-scale learning activities and to incorporate meaningful learning practices into routine project management.

MEAL Policies and Procedures

Quality Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) is fundamental to placing data in the hands of decision-makers and meeting stakeholders’ information needs.  CRS’ approach is articulated in a series of MEAL Policies and Procedures (MPPs).  Spanning the entire project cycle from design to close-out, the 10 policies define the CRS MEAL standard and procedures define what steps are required to meet each standard. The MPPs apply to all programming, from the simple to the complex, and in development and emergency settings. See the brief orientation video below for more information.

MPP Orientation Video. Also available in Español and Francés

Compliance Highlights

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Compliance - Fiscal Year 2015
“Complete compliance” was 48% in FY15, when the MPPs first came into effect.
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Compliance - Fiscal Year 2022
“Complete compliance” was 77% in FY22.
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Compliance - Fiscal Year 2023
“Complete compliance” was 82% in FY23.

Where We Work

Explore the regions where CRS is transforming lives through your generosity. From Africa to Latin America, discover stories of hope and resilience across the globe.

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Key Tools and Initiatives

The following MEAL Tools and Key Initiatives are intended to provide our partners, prospective donors, and MEAL staff a better understanding of CRS’ approaches, and aim to contribute to MEAL efforts in the global humanitarian and development sector.

Stay Updated

Program News & Articles

With a team of Communications staff around the world, we can provide real-time updates during emergencies and on a wide variety of current issues and events facing the developing world and the international community.

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Turn dollars into change.

Explore the regions where CRS is transforming lives through your generosity. From Africa to Latin America, discover the stories of hope and resilience across the globe.