SDC and SECO projects and programmes are closely monitored, reviewed on a regular basis and systematically evaluated by external experts. This approach is a decisive factor in the success of Swiss international cooperation.
Careful monitoring and an adaptive culture produces results
Monitoring and evaluation includes quantitatively and qualitatively measurable objectives, annual country and regional reports, as well as independent evaluations and reports on effectiveness, in accordance with the guidelines of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC). These tools, together with evaluations by the Swiss Federal Audit Office, are instrumental in helping Swiss international cooperation efforts to reduce poverty attain crucial outcomes. Furthermore, these efforts are respected internationally because they are well planned, effective and credible. In this spirit, Switzerland supported the formulation of the 2030 Agenda on the establishment of an international framework for the assessment and review of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). For the SDC and SECO, constructive self-criticism ensures that their international cooperation efforts remain effective and adaptive. Even when baseline analyses have been performed, some projects do not turn out as planned. This may be due to unexpected or uncontrollable changes in the context in which they are implemented, such as the outbreak of violent conflict, economic and financial crises or natural disasters. The cause, however, may lie with the SDC or SECO, who only realise once the project is up and running that their assumptions were wrong.
Drawing the right conclusions
Good monitoring should signal early on if a project or programme is not achieving its stated goals. Action then needs to be taken to identify the reasons behind this potential failure and draw the right conclusions on the future path of a project or the need for another project. This is precisely what happened to SECO and its project to improve urban infrastructures and water supplies in Tajikistan. It realised that if the local community were to reap the long-term benefits, it would have to systematically foster partners’ skills and project ownership. The revised project included not only investments in the water infrastructure, but also efforts to strengthen the local water utilities and raise public awareness of the issue.
A critical evaluation of both the successes and failures of a project is only possible if there is an open, adaptive culture and an unwavering commitment to achieving ambitious goals. For example, the SDC launched a project in Bosnia and Herzegovina to encourage constitutional reforms. Public debates were organised and attended by members of the local community and civil society. While they led to the formulation of concrete proposals, these were never implemented. An absence of political will, coupled with political stagnation and discussions that increasingly ran along ethnic lines, meant that attempts to bring about reforms – one of the intended project outcomes – came to nothing.
Realising that constitutional reforms are not yet possible and that the initiative to change must come from within, the SDC is now planning a project to foster citizens’ participation in and contribution to the political process.
Learning as a key success factor
Adapting or discontinuing a project is not desirable. But such actions show that the monitoring mechanisms used by the SDC and SECO actually work. It is important to accept necessary changes and use the experience to shape future efforts. A review of an SDC labour migration project in Bangladesh, for example, concluded that, while the International Labour Organization (ILO) was indeed a competent partner, it was not in a position to carry out all planned activities. As a result, the project was split into two separate projects. The first now benefits from the ILO’s core competences, while the second is implemented by a more suitable partner.
It is important to remember that complex realities and contexts lie behind the figures and graphs contained in these evaluations and effectiveness reports. Given that they involve people and entire communities, circumstances may be difficult to forecast or change at a moment’s notice. Results-driven planning, ongoing monitoring and taking on board the findings of evaluations and effectiveness reports can, in these circumstances, turn around such projects. This is the task of effective international cooperation and it is this standard that the SDC and SECO have set for themselves.
