Monitoring and evaluating our results is the best way to gauge the impact of PeacePlayers International's programs.
PPI is committed to rigorously monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of its programs across the world. With a new partner in Real Impact Solutions, a program monitoring and software engineering firm, PPI is currently refining an organization-wide data capturing and monitoring and evaluation system that bulk up our capacity to track participants, staff, and stakeholders as they interact with PPI programs. In particular, they will help us to capture outputs, such as the number of participants, events, coaches, etc.; as well as outcomes, such as attitude change, friendships, and willingness to work with the other side.
In the past, PPI has implemented both outside evaluations and surveys/questionnaires. While both these tools are important, they’re each only a small part of the overall strategy that we use to test and measure our impact. PPI is in the process of developing a new robust set of indicators with Real Impact Solutions tailored to meet the challenges of each of our individual sites. An effective system of monitoring and evaluation is essential to PPI’s success in the long-term. As the following clip from USAID asserts, it is important to measure the impact of sports on youth development:
It’s a difficult task, isn’t it? I’m sure PPI with the help of others will continue to get better at it.
It IS hard, Chris! The pre- and post- surveys that our participants in NI take are really helpful, though! PPI-NI works with the Institute for Conflict Research in Belfast; they host focus groups with participants, teachers, community leaders, etc. to really get a feel for the programming here. ICR is great!