What is Project Monitoring?
Project Monitoring plays a vital role in project management as well as in decision making
process. It refers to the process of keeping a track of all the project related metrics
like complete performance by an NGO; including team performance, identifying issues and
taking necessary actions on the budget to meet the specified targets.
In all, project monitoring is overlooking at all the tasks and keeping an eye on all
project related activities and making sure that the project is implemented and running
as planned.
Need of Project Monitoring
Project Monitoring helps in bringing out the problems that might occur during the
implementation of the project demanding solution for smoother progress,
- to access project results,
- to improve process planning,
- to promote learning,
- to understand all stakeholder’s perspective and,
- to ensure accountability.
Importance of Project Management
Project Management helps the donor as well as an NGO decision making, accountability and
learning about a project.
- Result Framework: As a donor, you should receive a complete
theory of .how the proposed project will lead to the desired change.
- Logical Framework: For a donor; logical framework plays and
important role as this will help by showing what a project will do, key
assumptions, and how will the project be monitored and evaluated.
- Detailed Monitoring and Evaluation Plan: The donors should have
a proper and specific monitoring and evaluation plan; which should include
theory of change, updated log- frame, indicator tracking table (ITT),
performance indicator reference sheet, annual monitoring plan with strategy,
data, staffing and capacity to develop the plan.
- Mid- Term Requirements: A donor usually requires a mid- term
evaluation. The purpose is to review a project implementation mechanism,
progress towards target, methods used for implementation and theory of change.
- Final Evaluation: Donor needs a final evaluation at the end of
the project to determine the extent to which the objectives of the project have
been achieved.
Questions from the donor’s perspective over the monitoring of a project:
- Are these tasks being carried out as planned and
projected?
- Are there any unforeseen consequences of
implementing the project?
- Is the time- period framed enough for the project?
- Are there any elements to be changed?
- What are the impacts of the changes made?
- Are the actions taken leading to the expectations?
Role of Project Monitoring
Monitoring can be referred as a management tool providing continuous feedback of the
project as well as assist in making potential decisions timely to sustain the project.
- Physical and Financial Monitoring: measures progress of the
project against established indicators of success.
- Process Monitoring: identifying the factors accounting for the
progress of activities and successful outputs.
- Impact Monitoring: measuring of the initial responses and
reactions of the project activity and their immediate effects.
