Number of persons consulted (disaggregated by sex/age) before designing a program/project [alternatively: while implementing the program/project]
Number of persons consulted (disaggregated by sex/age) before designing a program/project [alternatively: while implementing the program/project]
Participation in design of assessments, programmes, evaluations etc, means that a selected segment(s) of the affected populaiton have a direct influence on decision making. Measures should be taken to ensure the participation of members of all groups of affected people – young and old, men and women. Special efforts should be made to include people who are not well represented, are marginalised (e.g. by ethnicity or religion) or otherwise ‘invisible’ (e.g. housebound or in an institution). The participation of youth and children should be promoted so far as it is in their own best interest and measures taken to ensure that they are not exposed to abuse or harm. (Sphere Core Standard 1, Guidance Note 3)
Possible examples:
- # of focus group discussions organized with affected girls, women, boys and men that have been used to influence decisions made on design of assessments, programmes, standards, selection criteria, etc.
- % of female and % of male parents actively participating in the conception and implementation of M&E of education in emergencies services.
Unit Description:
Number
Numerator:
number of persons consulted
Denominator:
N/A
General guidance:
Understanding and addressing the barriers to participation faced by different people is critical to balanced participation. How a cluster or organisation enables key stakeholders to play an active role in the decision-making processes that affect them. It is unrealistic to expect an organisation to engage with all stakeholders over all decisions all of the time. Therefore the organisation must have clear guidelines (and practices) enabling it to prioritize stakeholders appropriately and to be responsive to the differences in power between them. Mechanisms need to be in place to ensure that the most marginalized and affected are represented and have influence. Participation here also encompasses the processes through which an organisation or cluster monitors and reviews its progress and results against goals and objectives; feeds learning back into the organisation on an on-going basis; and reports on the results of the process. To increase accountability to stakeholders, goals and objectives must be also designed in consultation with those stakeholders. A well known example of participation in developing indicators is the WASH indicator developed by a community which was - "# of hours girls spend in school" - highlighting the importance of education to the community, and also that improved water access had improved education possibilities. So the indicator has a measurement of impact built into it, the improved water access as an outcome can be assumed.
Guidance on phases:
All Phases
Phase applicability:
Pre-crisis/Baseline
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 4
Data Sources:
Agencies, NGOs, Government
Comments:
• Organisations document how it speaks with a balanced cross-section of representatives from the affected communities.
• Agency has a verifiable record of how communities (or their representatives) are demonstrably involved and influential in decision-making, implementation and judgement of impact throughout the lifetime of a project.
• Agency has mechanisms in place to monitor and evaluate outcomes and impact and these are reported against (incl. to affected communities).
• Cluster has a verifiable record of how it identified interest groups in the affected communities, and the power relationships that exist.