Smart Toolkit for Evaluating Information Projects, Products and Services: Second Edition: Prelims

The evaluation of information projects, products and services geared to reducing poverty and improving livelihoods in developing countries takes place within the context of a set of standard activities. Experience shows that it is difficult to understand, implement and follow-up evaluation without understanding these contextual activities – from project planning, implementation and management to monitoring, impact assessment and follow up.In Part 1, we start by providing some background to monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment, what the terms mean, and recent changes in approach. We then look at the two fundamental ingredients of good evaluation – stakeholder participation and learning. Having laid these foundations, we move on to the context in which evaluation takes place – the project cycle, a widely used management tool, and the importance of planning.We then look briefly at monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment before moving on, in Part 2, to an in-depth discussion of the evaluation process. Throughout Part 1 you’ll find information on best practice, as well as examples of applying the various activities in a project cycle to information projects, products or services.

In 2001, a group of information practitioners from various development agencies, led by CTA, KIT and IICD, began working together to produce a manual that would support self-evaluation by information practitioners. At their first meeting the word ‘smart’ was chosen to emphasise ‘best practice’ and as an oblique reference to the SMART indicators (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-bound) common in evaluation literature.