Influence of Monitoring and Evaluation Practices on the Performance of County Government Projects: a Case of Mandera Central Sub-county, Mandera County: Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the influence of monitoring and evaluation practices on county government projects: a case of Madera central sub-county, Mandera County, Kenya. The study specifically established the influence of stakeholders’ engagement in M&E process, capacity building for M&E, and budgetary allocation and technology adoption on performance of county government projects. Theories that were utilised include: The Resource Based View Theory, The Principal Agent Theory, Theory of Change and Stewardship Theory. This study employed descriptive survey research design. The projects under consideration that made up the target were the 67 projects that were tendered for and started by the County government of Mandera in Mandera Central Sub County. A sample size of 267 were attained using (Yamane, 1967) simplified formula. Stratified random sampling was used to obtain a sample from each stratum. The main tool of data collection for this study was questionnaires. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 25.0). All the questionnaires received were referenced and items in the questionnaire were coded to facilitate data entry. After data cleaning which entails checking for errors in entry, descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean score and standard deviation were estimated for all the quantitative variables. The qualitative data from the open-ended questions were analyzed using thematic content analysis and presented in narrative form. Inferential data analysis was done using multiple regression analysis. Information was presented in form of Tables. The study found that amount allocated to M&E, adequacy of allocated amount, provision of budget allocation to M&E and timely disbursement of funds influence performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county to a great extent. The study found that advocacy to promote M&E, collaborations, stakeholder analysis and communication influence performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county to a great extent. The study found that technical expertise in M&E; surveillance system; and M&E champions influence performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county to a great extent. The study found that privacy issues e.g. invasion by hackers; security concerns; ICT literacy; information sharing among stakeholders and system incompatibility with stakeholders/partners influence performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county to a great extent. The study concluded that capacity building for M&E had the greatest influence on the performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county, followed by stakeholders’ engagement in M&E process, then technology adoption in M&E while budgetary allocation for M&E had the least influence to the performance of county government projects in Mandera central sub-county. The study recommends that the government should provide the county government projects in Mandera central sub-county with comprehensive, quality and convenient training on various technology used in county government projects in Mandera central sub-county. The study further recommends that deliberate efforts should be made by the stakeholders concerned with these projects to involve professional or experts in management of county government projects particularly during planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation phases.