The purpose of the study was to examine the influence of equity-focused monitoring and evaluation on performance of school-based health projects. The study objectives were to determine to what extend does equity-focused monitoring and evaluation influence performance of school-based health projects, to establish the key constructs that drive equitable implementation of health projects, and to determine which methodological designs are used and how they compare across existing studies. A search criteria protocol was developed and adopted for systematic literature review to identify the most current peer-reviewed journal articles published in English between January 2019 and April 2024 using Google scholar and PubMed database search engines. Search terms used were as follows; Equity, Inequity, equity-focused monitoring and evaluation, performance, school-based health program, Equity in health systems. Data extraction was performed using a pre-defined eligibility criterion and a pre-tested data abstraction form. Online database search yielded 25 studies out of which five met the inclusion criteria. Data were analysed using descriptive analysis. Study results suggest that equity-focused adaptation was widely conceptualized in literature but with limited description of how to operationalize monitoring and evaluation as a tool to advance equity and improve program performance. Of the five articles reviewed (n=5), inclusion of a collaborative design, anti-racism consideration, embedding priority population expertise, cultural safety, and values were identified as key constructs that drive equitable implementation of health projects. Methodological convergence was noted across all the articles (n=5) where purposive sampling method, stakeholders as the target population was adopted while four articles (n=4) also converged on mixed method study design. Divergence was reported in sample size and data analysis methods. We conclude that current studies have not exploited the potential influence of equity-focused monitoring and evaluation on performance of school-based health projects. Key constructs for equitable implementation and methodological designs are well grounded though with limited operationalization. The study recommends that there is a need in future for equity-focused monitoring and evaluation empirical studies to test operationalization of the conceptual and theoretical frameworks currently available in literature. This will help advance equity and performance of school-based health projects.

Most projects are customized in project management. Hence, successful accomplishment of the projects requires stakeholder participation. Moreover, the management of stakeholder’s participation in OVC projects is1 receiving more concentration in practice. The objective of the study was to establish the influence of stakeholder participation on sustainability of OVC projects in Mount Elgon Sub-County, Kenya. We sought to establish the influence of stakeholder participation in needs assessment on sustainability of OVC projects in Mount Elgon Sub-County, Kenya. The two grounding theories were; Freeman’s stakeholder theory and resource-based theory. The study employed a descriptive survey research design with a target population of 176 and a sample size of 122 stakeholders. The study applied quantitative methods of data collection. The questionnaires were pre-coded to ease data entry. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS to obtain frequency distributions, percentages, mean and standard deviations. The study findings delineates that stakeholder participation in needs assessment is significant in influencing sustainability of OVC projects with correlation coefficients of (r=0.623; P<0.000). The study concluded that stakeholder participation in need assessment significantly influences sustainability of OVC projects. The study subsequently recommended that stakeholder participation in needs assessment should be comprehensively undertaken during implementation of OVC projects in order to enhance their sustainability.

This study assessed the impact of data management and capacity building on the performance of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project in Kenya, specifically within the context of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) practices in public-private partnership (PPP) frameworks. Anchored in the tenets of the Principal-Agent Theory, Institutional Theory, and Transaction Cost Economics Theory, this research employs a survey-based approach, drawing insights from 55 SGR project employees. In exploring the influence of data management, the findings illuminate its significant correlation with the orchestration and advancement of the SGR project. Additionally, the study underscores the positive repercussions of capacity-building initiatives on enhancing the project’s performance metrics. Notably, participants exhibited a consensus regarding the efficacy of these programs in augmenting the skills and knowledge base of the project team and stakeholders. The study accentuates the imperative for a comprehensive review aimed at fortifying the accuracy and security of project data. It recommends a strategic emphasis on initiatives enhancing data reliability and security within the SGR project’s framework. These insights contribute crucial perspectives on the pivotal roles of data management and capacity building, specifically underscoring their influence on the SGR project in Kenya.

Service learning, an innovative learning technique that guarantees all learners are prepared for the labor market, has been trialed. Such a project needs continuous process monitoring and assessment, which has not occurred. The research has not only revealed the amount of transformation, the rates, the outcomes, and the problems faced by such a program. This study was taken purposefully to look at the influence of monitoring and evaluation, stakeholder involvement, and the implementation of service-learning pilot projects in public secondary schools in Homa Bay, Kenya. The guiding objectives was to investigate the influence of context, input, process and product monitoring on implementation of service-learning pilot projects; to determine the extent to which stakeholder participation moderates the link between monitoring and evaluation and the execution of service-learning pilot projects. The study employed an Ex post facto design, targeted a population of 17, 113, including: Board of managers, PTA, teachers, school administrators and learners within the secondary schools. Through the use of the CIPP model, a stratified random sampling technique with a sample size of 376 of the total population was reached. Semi-structured questionnaires and KII were used to collect primary data. The descriptive statistics and thematic analyses were done and the findings showed that the CIIP Model was found to influence implementation of service learning pilot projects. Where the context (ρ = 0. 266 < 1); Input monitoring (ρ = 1.196 > 1), while process and product evaluation were (ρ= 0.295 < 1) and (ρ= 9.621 > 1). Stakeholders engagement contributed immensely towards implementation, (p 0.00<0.05). In conclusion, CIPP model is application in monitoring and evaluation during project implementation. This study recommends integration of CIIP model in the project implementation.

Policy evaluators who are committed to eliminating social disparities face several difficulties aligning their principles with research methodologies presents. The transformative paradigm incorporates the understanding that ethical practice is inclusive in a culturally responsive manner with members of vulnerable and marginalized populations in ways that challenge the existing power structure. This paper looks into the relevance of the transformative paradigm in evaluating the Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Policy. More subtly, the paper focuses on two key threats to social cohesion and integration, as identified in the policy. These are the overconcentration of state powers on the executive arm of government; and the inequitable distribution of opportunities and public resources. The overconcentration of state power on the executive is a precursor to exploitation, exclusion, and the perpetuation of ethnic and regional inequality. Although the 2010 Constitution has clearly reshaped Kenya’s political landscape, the solution to reducing the stakes of political competition and political instability due to the over-concentration of executive power largely lies with individual politicians and informal institutions that complement, or compete with formal institutions. Instead of the existing ostensibly meritocratic system that benefits individuals connected to the appointing authority, a transformative framework would assist in monitoring whether public sector employment reflect the face of Kenya. The Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Policy, while important, should emphasise the role of Kenya’s informal institutions in peaceful nation united in their diversity. Although the policy stresses inclusivity in governance, important as it may be, there is the need for Kenya to also focus on economic and religious inclusivity. As a way of achieving inclusivity, the policy should seek to end the predictable five-year cycle of electoral violence and ethnic antagonism that has plagued Kenya for decades.

Kenya is a multi-ethnic and culturally diverse society that has witnessed conflicts arising from this ethnic and cultural diversity. The country’s politics is tainted with ethnic sentiments and politically induced disharmony. This paper used evaluability assessment to determine whether two issues identified in the Kenyan Cohesion and Integration Policy as threats to building a unified nation are evaluable, feasible and of use to achieve the policy’s objectives. The feasibility study, better known as an evaluability assessment, confirms that these two issues can be evaluated and can help policymakers and practitioners to achieve the country’s dream of building one cohesive nation that is proud of its diversity. Based on the discussion in this paper, it is advised that Kenya uses the evaluability assessment to provide short-and long-term outcomes that might be examined to measure efficacy and save superfluous or poorly conceived full-scale evaluations. The evaluability assessment method could be used in other, well-established programs related to the Kenya National and Integration Policy with a variety of stakeholders to foster new thinking and the potential for more focused and effective evaluations, even though there may be variations between programs and it is still unclear how generalisable these results may be. The next step would be to continue with an evaluation based on the results of this evaluability assessment and to continue refining the logic model with input from the participants.

Mismanagement of Kenya's racial and ethnic variety has fostered racial and ethnic distrust, friction, and conflict. To foster harmonious living in the country and protect the interests of the most vulnerable, the laws controlling ethnic profiling must be re-examined. This work aims to investigate how the Evaluability Assessment approach, when applied to the KNCIP, might foster greater racial and ethnic diversity by increasing participants' awareness of the program, pride in their participation, effective management, and informed policy decisions. The research aimed to understand better the role of evaluability evaluation in four key areas: (1) program design and redesign; (2) data collecting and its utility; (3) policy development; and (4) program performance to foster social cohesion. Both empirical and theoretical data were assessed using a desktop search and the Google scholar search engine and then picked using a purposive sample strategy. According to the study's key results, racial profiling severely damages Kenya's social fabric and undermines the country's overall sense of unity. By balancing reporting that alienates parts of society, elucidating misconceptions and misrepresentations, and encouraging community participation (especially from minorities and marginalized individuals) across socioeconomic and cultural divides, the EA process can help strengthen social cohesion with the help of management, stakeholders, and the necessary resources. To evaluate the KNCIP and develop interventions that further improve national harmony and social cohesion, this study concludes that a thorough EA should be undertaken on it by established standards. To improve the EA process and the outcomes of ethnic identity initiatives, it was suggested that training and education be provided to key parties that beneficiaries be involved in the EA, that policies be formulated more effectively, and that more empirical research is conducted.

This paper discusses the contributions of the Most Significant Change (MSC), its benefits and challenges in the context of monitoring and evaluation. The inquiry used qualitative methods of data review. It was evident that one of the recognizable change systems of the monitoring and evaluation model is the Most Significant Change (MSC) analysis. The model was founded by Rick Davies in late 1993, and it is still helpful to date, particularly in social settings. Today, the majority of NGOs in developed and developing countries use the model to evaluate and monitor their projects through consideration of various stories as well as through the use of democratic and participatory involvement of others in the project. In using the model, project managers must gather stories, especially stories of substantial transformation among staff, volunteers, participants, and groups. The stories are then verified to evaluate the changes in place. The model works best in social settings, and it was first applied in Bangladesh by Christian workers and Rick Davies to solve humanitarian project challenges. In using the model, key elements and steps that should be considered include defining the change, deciding how to collect the stories and collecting the most significant change stories. The stories are then verified, and evaluation is done to ensure that the project meets all the stakeholder's needs and values. The model works best with qualitative methods and is mostly used when changes are uncertain. However, it is associated with unreliable data and bias since it involves personal stories. It is important that project managers use the model to promote the accountability and transparency of their projects. This study fully contributes to monitoring and evaluation since it highlights some of the ways that project teams can use in managing their stories and using such stories to promote their project scope, accountability and transparency.