دانلود رایگان مقاله ارزیابی عمومی بازیابی برنامه کار عمومی

Abstract

Public works programmes (PWPs) are popular social protection instruments in the context of chronic poverty but very little has been published in the way of implementation and outcomes of these programmes. This paper presents a formative process and outcome evaluation of the recovery PWP in Blantyre City, Malawi. The evaluation used longitudinal household survey data of PWP beneficiaries, programme records and interview responses from programme staff and community leaders. Largely, the process evaluation findings showed an agreement between actual and planned activities. The outcome evaluation found indications that the PWP community assets offered some potential benefits to the communities, and that PWP wages allowed the beneficiaries to purchase some food. This however, did not translate into more meals per day, nor did the earnings prevent the decline in household assets as expected. Given a plausible PWP theory and high implementation fidelity, the PWP wage rate or number of days was either just enough to smooth participant income, or insufficient altogether, to enable achievement of more distal outcomes.

5. Conclusion and lessons learnt

This evaluation sought to provide an example for future theory driven evaluations of PWPs and other social protection programmes. A lesson for evaluators intending to carry out a formative evaluation of PWPs is the need to exhaustively articulate both the action and the impact theory of the PWP given the complexity and multifarious nature of PWPs. Secondly, for all impact evaluations of cash-for-work social security programmes, it is necessary to conduct an initial programme evaluability assessment to check if the beneficiary cash earnings compare well with the beneficiaries’ prevailing cost of living. This would assist evaluators in assessing the likelihood as well as the extent to which economic livelihood gains can be attributed to the programme. It is the discrepancy between the prevailing cost of living and the PWP beneficiary earnings (either due to a low wage rate or short duration of the PWP) that also help explain the lack of impact evidence for the Blantyre City PWP programme. Lastly, it is essential for a programme that involves multiple sites and a diversity of participants to be analysed across those sites whilst controlling for participant characteristics because implementation is likely to vary by site.