Monitoring and evaluation regulatory policy in Ghana

The NDPC is the policy regulatory body created under Articles 86 and 87 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana. Following the constitutional provision, the National Development Planning Commission Act, 1994 (Act 479) and the National Development Planning (System) Act, 1994 (Act 480) were enacted by the Parliament of Ghana in establishing the NDPC. Articles 86 and 87 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana clearly delineate the composition and functions of the NDPC which direct them to lead and coordinate the preparation of development plans and to commence the M&E of the country’s development efforts (NDPC, 2008). The results-based M&E system (RBMES) and results-based budgeting (RBB) is the adopted approach by the NDPC to monitor, evaluate and co-ordinate development policies, programmes and projects to ensure cost-effectiveness, institutional capacity strengthening, promotion of good governance, accountability and credibility to the partners and government as provided under the National Development Planning Act, 1994 (Act 479), section 2(2)(e) (NDPC, 1994a). The RBME approach, however, focused on the outcome and impact of the implementation of the programme or project.

The mandate of the NDPC was decentralized to the newly created decentralized development planning systems in Ghana, thus the district planning coordination unit (DPCU) at the MMDAs (NDPC, 1994b). As part of the coordination of the planning and development services of the local governance structure, the NDPC provides an external M&R service to the MMDAs. Key stakeholders are required to undertake effective M&E of projects (Tengan & Aigbavboa, 2017a), hence an 11-member team is constituted [Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 462)] and may co-opt any other sector agencies and persons from both the private sector and civil society organizations with relevant expertise in a given area (NDPC, 2008). The DPCU was subsequently established under section 46 of the Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 462). Under the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II), the DPCU in fulfilling the M&E function undertakes the following:

i Being directly responsible for the development and implementation of the District M&E Plan;

ii Convening quarterly DMTDP performance review meetings with all stakeholders. It is essential that representatives of the NDPC and RPCU attend the quarterly meetings;

iii Undertaking periodic project site inspections;

iv Liaising with the RPCU to agree on goals and targets;

v Defining indicators for measuring change, especially on gender equity and other cross-cutting themes in GPRS II, such as vulnerability, exclusion and social protection;

vi Collecting and collating feedback from the sub-district levels for preparation of the District APR;

vii Facilitating dissemination and public awareness creation on GPRS II, the Annual Progress Reports and other documents from NDPC at district and sub-district levels;

viii Providing support to GSS to undertake district-level CWIQ and other national surveys and census;

ix Producing District Annual Progress Reports and making recommendations for policy review; and

x Conducting mid-term and terminal evaluations of the DMTDP.

From the foregoing, there is evidence to suggest that government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) such as the GETFund and the Architectural and Engineering Services Limited (AESL) have structured technical departments and units mandated to undertake the M&.E of all construction and development projects initiated. The AESL reports on their M&.E plan covering resources and activities through the MWRWH. However, inadequate vehicular logistics and delays in the release of funds were outlined as the major challenges of the agency in delivering its M&.E mandate (MWRWH, 2010). Also, the AESL and the PWD of the MWRWH outline the functions of the department towards project delivery. Hence, ensuring projects meet quality, cost and time are critical performance criteria for these technical departments to achieve.

The Local Government Service (2014) provides the professional responsibilities of individual professional staff outlined in the scheme of service in the case of the MMDAs to strengthen and delineate duties towards achieving coordinated efforts in the project delivery. For instance, the DPCU of the MMDA is responsible for leading in strategic planning, efficient integration and implementation of public policies and programmes to achieve sustainable economic growth and development as well as efficiently controlling the resources and ensuring that field activities are efficiently performed to produce the desired output. The engineering unit also formulates policies for the efficient management and administration of the project and provides technical backstopping for the regional coordinating councils and MMDAs, in addition to offering technical assistance to the Local Government Service Secretariat, Regional Coordinating Councils and the MMDAs in all engineering matters (Local Government Service, 2014). Regarding the architectural unit the scheme of service of the local government requires them to advise management and provide inputs for the formulation and implementation of architectural policies; undertake site inspections to guide and advise on architectural projects; prepare designs and approve architectural drawings on projects; and prepare modules of structures (Local Government Service, 2014).

A documentary review of the M&.E practices at MDAs and MMDAs in Ghana suggests the existence of regulatory policies and frameworks on M&.E. The NDPC provides plans for the monitoring and reporting of projects and programmes of all the relevant sectors, departments and agencies that received funding from the

A review of the Ghanaian construction 165 central government for their project and programme implementation. What is not clear is the existence of an established policy framework and guideline at these ministries, departments and agencies and the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies on how M&E of construction projects should be done to achieve quality, schedule and cost targets as well as the project impact on the beneficiary community. At best, the existing plan considers the monitoring of development projects to conform to permit acquisition and building regulation adherence and expenditures of resources (budget) towards programme implementation.