66 Approaches that PEPFAR partners can take to support financing at each of these levels include:
Working with social service ministries and communities to do costing analyses and develop budget requests for the ministry of finance or, for communities, for district and local
government funds
Helping ministries, NGOs, and communities develop business plans, draft donor proposals, and establish private-public partnerships
Providing training to ministry and NGO accountants and other budget staff to better track expenses and improve cost estimates and systems for managing sub-grants and contracts
Encouraging community members to provide support or in-kind donations to vulnerable families
11.2.4 Building effective information management and accountability systems
OVC partners should also strengthen information management and accountability mechanisms. Much of the data generated by information systems is used to support other functions. Improvements within
data collection, analysis, and dissemination will contribute to improvements in other key areas.
Government level – Social service ministries must have strong systems for generating accurate social
service data as well as for coordinating relevant data with other ministries e.g., education statistics, birth and death registration, criminal cases involving children, health data, etc.. This information helps
identify child protection trends and estimate the impact of social service programming. This data can also be used to improve existing policies, plans, and laws.
Civil societyNGO level – NGOs should have systems for providing up-to-date data on program activities
to inform follow-up monitoring, program adjustments, planning, and progress reports, and for sharing and verifying data with relevant partners and clients. Monitoring and evaluation ME systems should
document both quantitative and qualitative data and facilitate the collection of lessons learned and best practices.
Community level
– Communities can be valuable sources of data and should have a good system for monitoring their progress toward community goals. They can also use data to hold community leaders
and service providers accountable for poor performance.
Approaches that PEPFAR partners can take to support information management and accountability systems at each of these include:
Advising and helping to create or strengthen national ME plans, systems, and databases Helping government agencies and NGOs establish realistic performance expectations and
address performance gaps Launching or supporting ministries in launching independent research studies and assessments
and disseminating research findings and lessons learned through appropriate media Facilitating community-based focus group discussions to verify data, identify new research
questions, launch research efforts, and use data to advocate for change
11.2.5 Building strong coordination and networking mechanisms
OVC partners should also support coordination and networking. In many ways, these functions can occur spontaneously, but coordination can also require some level of intervention.
Government level
– Social service ministries must have complete information about all actors working in the social service field. In many cases, government is the only actor with the mandate to plan
multiyear, sector-wide initiatives; to direct service providers to the geographic and technical areas that
67 require their assistance; and to authorize the activities of nongovernmental actors. Where appropriate,
they should have collaborative agreements, mechanisms for regularly engaging with stakeholders, and strong linkages with other ministries and government offices.
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Civil societyNGO level
– NGOs should likewise have information about social service actors, particularly those operating in the same geographic and technical area. They should also have collaborative
agreements, mechanisms for engaging with stakeholders, and processes for both referring clients for services and ensuring that services meet quality standards.
Community level
– Community members should have a good sense of their roles, responsibilities, and relationships with one another. They should know where to go for specific services and supports, how to
access these, and how to offer support to other community members.
Approaches that PEPFAR partners can take to support coordination and networking include: Helping to identify services and supports within a country or region and to develop or
strengthen service directories and referral mechanisms Negotiating memoranda of understanding and organizing regular meetings with key partners
Carrying out community assessments to identify and better understand the capacities and needs of vulnerable families in specific communities
Helping to form stronger community relationships and, where appropriate, creating or strengthening existing community child-focused committees
Helping communities form relationships with other communities, NGOs, and government actors to broaden their sources of support and protection in the event of future shocks
Connecting the formal and informal components of the social service system
11.3 Prioritization of Recommended Interventions
