Monitoring vs. Evaluation Quiz

In Badakhshan, staff from the Aga Khan Foundation are collecting monthly data on the number of hygiene kits distributed and the attendance of awareness sessions. What kind of questions are primarily being asked in this process?

• What was the long-term impact of the intervention?

• How many people received the service and when?

• What were the challenges faced during the project’s initial design?

• How satisfied are stakeholders with the completed project?

In Baghlan, the Aga Khan Foundation completed a two-year livelihoods project. A team is now conducting a study to understand whether the intervention improved household income and resilience. What is the primary purpose of this activity?

• Adjusting the budget for upcoming activities

• Evaluating immediate outputs of ongoing activities

• Assessing the effectiveness and impact of the intervention

• Generating daily activity reports

The MEAL unit at the Aga Khan Foundation’s Kabul office collects data every quarter to monitor education project indicators, but only conducts evaluations at the end of each 2-year project cycle. What does this difference illustrate?

• Monitoring and evaluation happen simultaneously

• Evaluation is more frequent than monitoring

• Monitoring is ongoing, while evaluation is periodic

• Both monitoring and evaluation should occur weekly

An Area Officer from Bamyan collects routine data during field visits and shares it with the MEAL Officer, who is also coordinating an external consultant to evaluate the effectiveness of a project run by the Aga Khan Foundation. Who typically holds responsibility for each?

• Monitoring is handled by donors; evaluation by beneficiaries

• Monitoring is done by field teams; evaluation by internal or external evaluators

• Both monitoring and evaluation are only donor responsibilities

• Monitoring is the consultant’s task; evaluation is the project team’s job

The MEAL Manager at the Aga Khan Foundation in Kabul uses weekly monitoring reports to adjust outreach strategies, while final evaluation reports are submitted to donors and used for future program planning. How is the use of data different in monitoring and evaluation?

• Monitoring data is for publication; evaluation data is confidential

• Monitoring data helps in day-to-day decisions; evaluation data supports strategic planning

• Monitoring data supports learning only; evaluation supports accountability only

• Monitoring and evaluation data serve the exact same purpose