Report 16. First assessment and refinement of the PLUS M&E system : Port-au-Prince, Haiti, February 16-March 9, 1994

Abstract

The objective of PLUS of "sustainable increases in on-farm productivity and farmer income through the integration into farming systems of appropriate land use and soil conservation measures which enhance soil productivity" are achieved with a series of interventions that result in improved yields and translates into higher and/or more stable farmer incomes as erosion rates from hillside cultivations are reduced over time. The experimental design, implicit in the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) of PLUS, addresses adequately the needs of the M&E system with a learning process that continually refines interventions and their implementation, and identifies new interventions requiring a continuous formative evaluation. PLUS has established an on-going system to determine the farm-level impact for the project's four primary interventions: hedgerows, checkdams, rockwalls and vegetable gardens. Protocols and questionnaires have been developed to monitor each intervention in selected watersheds in order to obtain the necessary information to address the Strategic Performance Indicators (SPI) of the PLUS M&E (Monitoring and Evaluation) system. The progress that has been made to date, in implementing the M&E system and associated "learning process" is remarkable. In assessing the M&E information collection and reporting system the following recommendations are made regarding additional date that need to be collected for the calculation of the SPIs. Although most of this information is included in the protocols instructing the enumerators on data collection and recording, it is suggested that an entry is also allowed on the forms for the following data. Include data on cost of transportation, differentiated by expenditures for transportation and time spent by the farmer in transporting the produce to the market. Include data on prices received by the farmer for the produce. Record tenure control that the farmer has on the plot with the intervention. Determine cost of constructing a checkdam and a rock wall and installing a hedgerow. Soil type information and slope should also be recorded for the monitored plots. Finally, an estimate of total farm area cultivated by each monitored farmer should also be part of the information collected. The design of control plots will be enhanced by matching their characteristics with those of the monitored plots. These characteristics should relate not only to slope but also to type of soil, tenure control of the plot, and total area farmed. Control sample contamination, as control farmers adopt PLUS interventions, will force a continuing replacement of farmers in the control sample. The data collection forms and protocols for the control sample are simply parts of the monitoring forms and protocols. Protocols and data collection forms need to be developed for the remaining PLUS interventions of fruit tree grafting, seed banks and trees, as well as for the farm trials. Implementor reports on numbers of participating farmers, training sessions, meters of hedgerow installed, number of trees, hectares with rock walls, etc., should be reporting these numbers by watershed or zone of intervention. The present reporting of aggregate numbers does not address the information needs for calculating the SPIs. The real discount rate and use of financial measures for each intervention is outlined in this report. It is recommended that remaining values be used to truncate long series of data for the interventions and that financial measures of project interventions be accompanied by a commentary on: the size of the required investment, availability of credit, particular farmer skills, etc. The PLUS SPIs are presented in this report, in Appendix B, and a preliminary assessment of project wide PLUS interventions was made. As the project evolves and PLUS learns from its M&E, SPIs should also be changing. To this effect, a questionnaire was developed for PLUS, in order to determine the usefulness of present SPIs in improving project implementation. Although an economic analysis of PLUS project wide impacts of interventions is not part of the PLUS M&E system, it would add information to the evaluation of PLUS interventions. This is because off-farm impacts could be much larger than on-farm impacts. In addition to an economic analysis, PLUS should perform a farmer appraisal and needs assessment as soon as possible, since presently available information does not derive from a systematic approach that can address the SPIs. A preliminary estimation attempt of PLUS SPIs was made in conjunction with a project wide assessment of PLUS interventions. The results obtained based on the 1993 PLUS implementation efforts, are as follows. During 1993, 60 ha of arable land was created behind checkdams and the expected physical soil building behind the hedgerows installed (if properly maintained), is estimated at 263,400 cubic feet. Secondary adoption of PLUS interventions by zone of intervention, based on baseline information, could range from a low of 6 percent to a high of 85 percent of plots adjacent to project assisted farmers. More than two-thirds of the income generated to the farmer (H$630), comes from PLUS interventions that directly address environmentally improved land use practices. The "farmer needs assessment exploratory survey" completed by PLUS, has provided some direction for the current implementation of the farm trials of bean and cowpea varieties and vegetative barriers with different principal components (plantain/sugar cane and leucaena/gliricidia). From a preliminary project wide financial evaluation (for some of the PLUS interventions), it is estimate that PLUS interventions contribute to the average farmer income from crops of H$352, the following percentage increases: hedgerows 7.2 percent, checkdams 22.7 percent, vegetable gardens 51.1 percent and trees (fruit and hardwood) 98 percent. In comparing interventions, vegetable gardens have the highest Internal Rate of Return (IRR = infinity), followed by hedgerows (IRR = 85%) and checkdams (IRR = 73%).

Pwojè PLUS vize pou ogmante pandan lontan randman peyizan yo jwenn nan jaden yo ak kòb y-ap rantre nan travay tè-a. Pou sa, li entegre nan sistèm fè jaden nan mòn yo, teknik pou kenbe tè ak dlo lapli ki pèmèt tè-a bay plis randman. Ak tout you seri teknik ke pwojè-a mete sou pye, ewozyon fini pa diminye, rekòt yo vin ogmante, ki fè moun yo ka fè plis lajan, yo ka fè lakilti pi lontan nan mòn yo. Jan yo planifye sistèm swivi ak evalwasyon pwojè-a pèmèt ke yo ka pran leson pandan y-ap sèvi ak sistèm-nan pou amelyore entèvansyon yo ak fason yo aplike yo. Li pèmèt tou identifye nouvo aktivite ki mande pou toujou ap aprann pandan evalwasyon-an ap kontinye fèt. Pwojè PLUS etabli you sistèm pou kalkile impak kat (4) pi gwo entèvansyon pwojè-a: ranp vivan, mi sèk nan ravin, kòdon ròch, ak jaden legim. Pwotokòl ak kesyonè yo devlopé pou evalwe chak aktivite nan basen vèsan ke yo chwazi yo ki pèmèt ranmase tout enfòmasyon ki nesesè pou réponn SPI-yo (an angle: "Strategic Performance Indicators" - Indikatè pou mezire pèfomans estratejik) ki nan sistèm swivi ak evalwasyon Pwojè-a. Gen gwo pwogrè ki fèt e gen anpil bagay ki aprann depi sistèm nan ap aplike nan Pwojè-a. Dapre sa nou wè nan fason yo ranmase ak rapòte enfòmasyon yo, men rekòmandasyon non fè pou gen plis enfòmasyon ki rasanble pou pèmèt kalkile SPI-yo. Se vre ke enfòmasyon sa yo nan pwotokòl pou fòme mou k-ap travay pou ranmase ak rapòte done yo, men li ta bon pou ekri yo nan fòm y-ao itilize yo. Men enfòmasyon anplis li ta bon pou konnen: kou transpò pwodwi yo, ki gen ladan depans ak tan ki nesesè pou peyizan yo mennan pwodwi yo nan mache, ak pri yo vann pwodwi yo. Li ta bon pou konnen tou nan ki kondisyon peyizan yo travay tè-a (pwopriyetè, fèmye, demwatye ...). Fòk yo ta konnen tou kòb ki depanse pou fè you mi sèk, you kòdon ròch, you ranp vivan. Pou jaden y-ap evalwe yo, li ta bon pou konnen ki kalite sòl ak ki pant yo genyen. Anfin, fòk yo ta chèche konnen sou ki kantite tè chak peyizan y-ap swiv yo fè lakilti. Jaden kontwòl (ki travay jan peyizan nan zòn nan fè lakilti) ke yo chwazi yo te dwe plis sanble ak jaden ki gen estrikiti ke y-ap swiv yo. Non sèlman yo te dwe genyen apeprè menm pant, men menm kalite sòl, yo ta dwe travay nan menm kondisyon, yo ta dwe menm kantite tè. Kòm gen plis peyizan k-ap adopte teknik pwojè-a, yo pral oblije ranplase tanzantan peyizan-kontwòl yo pa lòt. Fòm pou ekri done yo ak pwotokòl pou chwazi jaden kontwòl yo, se you pati nan fòm ak pwotokòl pou fè swivi-a. Yo dwe fè pwotokòl ak fòm pou rasanble done sou grefaj zab fwitye yo, sou bank semans, sou plantasyon pye bwa, ak esè nan jaden peyizan yo. CARE ak PADF dwe bay chif sou kantite patisipan, kantite reyinyon fòmasyon yo fè, kantite mèt ranp vivan ki fèt, pye bwa ki plante, kantite tè ki gen mi sèk etc. pa basen vèsan ou byen pa zòn. Jan yo bay li an gwo kounye-a pa pèmèt kalkile SPI yo. Nan rapò sa-a nou bay fason pou kalkile sa yo rele nan ekonomi to aktyalizasyon-an ("taux d'actualization") ak jan yo dwe itilize mezi finansye yo pou chak entèvansyon. Nou rekòmande tou ke yo prezante kèk chif an pliziè ti moso pou yo pa parèt trò long. Yo ta dwe tou lè y-ap pale de mezi finansye ki pran pou chak aktivite pwojè-a, bay kèk enfòmasyon tankou: kantite lajan ki envesti, si gen kredi nan zòn nan, sa peyizan yo konn fè byen etc. SPI yo prezante nan Apendis B rapò sa-a, e te gen you premye evalwasyon aktivite pwojè-a ki te fèt. Plis pwojè-a ap evolwe, eksperyans ap fèt, SPI yo dwe chanje. Se pou sa, you kesyonè te devlope pou konnen si SPI yo te itil, si yo te pèmèt amelyore pèfòmans pwojè-a. Menm si you analiz ekonomik sou impak aktivite pwojè-a pa fè pati sistèm swivi ak evalwasyon-an, men li ajoute sou enfomasyon ki pèmèt evalwe aktivite pwojè-a, paske impak pwojè-a kapab depase impak nan jaden peyizan-an. Anplis you analiz ekonomik, PLUS dwe fè you evalwasyon bezwen peyizan yo rapidman, paske enfòmasyon ki ranmase deja yo pat soti de you apwòch sistematik ki te fèt espesialman pou reponn SPI yo. You premye esè estimasyon SPI yo te fèt ansanm avèk you evalwasyon an gwo ki te fèt sou entèvansyon pwojè-a. Men ki rezilta ki te jwenn e ki te baze sou sa ki te fèt pandan lane 1993-la: 60 ekta tè kiltivab te kreye deyè mi sèk yo, 263.400 mèt kib tè te dwe ateri dèyè ranp vivan ki te fèt up (si yo ta fèt kòrèkteman). Dapre enfòmasyon ki ranmase, kantite peyizan ki pa travay ak pwojè-a men ki kopye teknik pwojè-a sou vwazin yo ka evalwe ant 6 pou san jiska 85 pou san. Plis ke detyè kòb peyizan yo fè (H$630) te soti nan aktivite pwojè-a, aktivite ki pèmèt amelyore anvironman-an tou. Ankèt pou chèche konnen bezwen payizan yo ke pwojè-a te fè ("Farmer needs assessment exploratory survey") te you gid pou etabli sou tè peyizan yo esè varyete pwa òdinè, pwa inkoni, ak ranp vivan ki fèt ak tout kalite plant (bannann/kann ak lesena/glirisidya). Dapre you premye evalwasyon finansye gwosomodo (pou kèk entèvansyon PLUS), kòb anplis ke pwojè-a pote pou peyizan-an nan fè lakilti yo apeprè H$352. Ranp vivan responsab 7,2 pou san ogmantasyon lajan anplis peyizan-an resevwa, mi sèk 22,7 pou san, jaden legim 51,1 pou san, pye bwa (fwitye, forestye) 98 pou san. Lè y-ap konpare entèvansyon yo, jaden legim yo bay pi gwo pwofi, sa yo rele nan ekonomi to randman intèn, "taux de rendement interne" (pa ka konte), apre se ranp vivan (85 pou san) ak mi sèk (73 (pou san).