Background
Statistics Sierra Leone (Stat SL) was created by the Statistics Act of 2002 and the Census Act of 2002 as a corporate body to conduct Population and Housing Censes and to collect, compile, analyze and disseminate accurate, reliable and timely statistical information for informed decision making by government and the general public. Stat SL is governed by a council which provides strategic guidance to the Chief Executive (the Statistician General) in carrying out the day-to-day administration of the institution.
The Mission Statement of Stat SL as mandated under the Statistics Act 2002, is to coordinate, collect, compile, analyze and disseminate high quality and objective official statistics to assist informed decision-making, and discussion within the government, business and the media, as well as the wider national and international community.
Vision
The Vision of Statistics Sierra Leone is to create a sustainable National Statistical System (NSS) for the coordination and production of official statistics that will assist informed and evidence based decision making.
Objectives
The Overall objective of the Monitoring , Evaluation & Training (M,E&T):
The Overall objective of the M, E & Training is to develop monitoring, evaluation and training systems for the institution (Stats SL) and oversee the implementation of these systems.
The specific objectives of the M, E & Training include:
- To provide the indicators, tools and processes used to measure progress against plan and having the desired result.
- To track progress and ensure systematic production and effective utilization of statistics/information.
- To develop a corresponding monitoring and evaluation framework to match the comprehensive nature of Stats SL projects.
- To assess progress of the implementation and attainment of results.
- To ensure efficient and effective statistical development process and innovations through standardized statistical methods and efficient utilization of resources.
- To monitor and evaluate both staff and the institution.
- To ensure adequate training (Internal & External) of Stats SL staff in both technical and non-technical areas to be efficient and effective in their work.
- To create partnerships with other institutions and to share knowledge and facilitate trainings as may be appropriate.
- To ensure and maintain experts' knowledge management bank for Stats SL, government, organizations and public consumption.
The need for Monitoring, Evaluation and Training
Stats SL as an organization implements a variety of projects and programmes year in year out, which definitely requires a monitoring , evaluation and training system to be put in place. An M&E system refers to all the indicators, tools and processes that you will use to measure if a project/programme has been implemented according to the plan (monitoring) and is having the desired result (evaluation). Currently as it stands, the implementation of projects/programmes is being thwarted by a number of factors, thus the preciseness and timeliness of such datasets is often a challenge. In order to track progress and ensure systematic production and effective utilization of statistics/information, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation process is important.
Moving forward with this, a corresponding monitoring and evaluation framework will be developed to match the comprehensive nature of Stat SL projects to assess progress of the implementation and attainment of results. The framework will be designed in a consultative and inclusive manner to provide a unified framework for progress tracking, identification of challenges and a platform for sharing experience and drawing lessons and best practices.
The quality of the National Statistical System (NSS) to a large degree depends on the performance of the employees. Hence, making sure the staff has adequate skills is crucial. Training can improve the performance and productivity of the staff and ensure that they have the relevant skills.
Expected Outcomes
The Department has three units: i) the Project unit and ii) The Training unit and iii) the Institutional Performance unit.
- Project Unit - The Project Unit is responsible for monitoring and evaluating projects, both new and established, providing accountability and ensuring efficiency and success from start to finish.
- Training Unit - The Training Unit is responsible to plan, design and implement a structured training program and policies for the institution.
- Institutional Performance Unit - The Institutional Performance Unit is responsible to measure the institution’s performance in respect of input, output, outcomes, effectiveness and efficiency.
The M&E and Training Department is responsible for monitoring and evaluating initiatives, programs and projects, both new and established, providing accountability and ensuring efficiency and success from start to finish. Also the department will be responsible for establishing, modifying and monitoring key performance indicators to report and record physical progress for specific projects within all Programs of Stat SL.
