Monitoring Framework in Thailand : Status, Challenges and Good Practices

Witaya PintongDirector of Development Evaluation and Communication OfficeOffice of the National Economic and Social Development Board

3RD M&E Network Forum Philippines6-8 November 2013,Asian Development Bank,Manila,Philippines

Agenda

2

The Plan’s Formulation Process

Legal Framework

Institutional Setup

Monitoring Technical System

Major Challenges

The Root Causes

Good Practices

Monitoring Information System

3

National Economic and Social Development Plans and Process

Indicative Development GuidelinesThailand has used National Plans as indicative development

guidelines to achieve development targets since 1961 (1st plan)

Planning Process

1st Plan (1961-1966) – 4th Plan (1977 – 1981) Top Down Process

Project Approach

Focus on economic development but after 3rd plan also on social development.

5th Plan (1982-1986) – 7th Plan (1992– 1996)

Bottom up ProcessProgramming Approach Poverty Eradication , spatial development (Eastern Seaboard),Science & Technology , Environment , Distribution of development management

8th Plan (1997-2002) – 11th Plan (2012– 2016) People Center Development and

People Participation.

Philosophy of sufficiency economy as

guideline philosophy.

Holistic Development Approach for

Sustainability

9th and 10th Plan “Green and Happiness Society.

4

Development Plan Evaluation

Under the Royal Decree on Good Governance (2003) enacted under Thai Constitution BE 2550,the government has to draw up

a “Public Administration Plan” for administering the country.

The Basic Policy of the State Constitution

Government PolicyNational

Development Plan

Public Administrative Plan

4-Year Ministerial Plan

Annual Action Plan

Annual Budget Allocation

Implementation

Monitoring & Evaluation

Legal Framework

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• The National Economic and Social Development Act (1978) states that one of the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB)’s role is to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the National Economic and Social Development Plan.

The National Economic and Social Development Plan

level

• The Royal Decree on Good Governance (2003) has the related issues include; (1) each public organization must perform the monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the organization’s action plan, which comply with the OPDC’s standard. (2) establish the financial evaluation programs of the state’s operations. (3) create incentives and punishments measures

• The regulations of Prime Minister’s Office on Public Sector Monitoring and Evaluation (2005) has established the Public Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Committee

The National Administrative Plan

level

Institutional Setup

The Development Evaluation and Communication Office (DECO), under NESDB, performs the monitoring and Evaluation of the Plan.

Line Ministries report their performance related to each strategy.

The result is submitted to the National Economic and Social Development Board and the cabinet every year.

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Monitoring Technical System

Monitoring and evaluation of the National Development Plan is performed in 4 approaches;

Evaluate the impact of the plan on the national development, using

Green and Happiness Index (GHI)

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Monitor the Plan’s target achievement

Monitoring Development performance according to the Plan’s strategies

- Evaluate the situation of each strategy of the Plan

- Line ministries report their performance which support each strategy of the Plan

Monitoring development performance according to the

Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy, using questionnaire

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2

3

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Definition and components of “GHI”

“Green and happy society”

Health

Economic strength

and equity

Warm and

loving family

Democratic society

with good governance

Surroundings and ecological system

Community

empowerment

•Physical and Mental healthy

•Intelligence

• Employment

• Strong economy

• Equity

• Family roles• Family ties

•Self- reliance

•Supportive community

• Security in life and property

• Good quality environment

• Ecological system

• Democratic

awareness

• Good governance

• Harmonious

society

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Main

Components

(factors to

create

happiness)

means a state, which Thai people are well-being with good quality of life, balanced of physical, mental and intelligence. Economic, social and environmental aspects

are integrated within the peaceful and harmonious society.

• Self- dependent

Process and methodology of the GHI

Literature Reviews People participation

Conceptualizing

Definitions and components

Indicators to be measured

Focus group

Field work

Calculating by method of composite index

Benchmarking and weighting

Results

Monitoring Information System

NESDB designs template for the line ministries to

report the data for M&E.

NESDB puts the data in the data sharing folder in DECO’s computer network.

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Data Sharing

Result of the Plan’s M&E is reported to the public in NESDB’s annual conference and through NESDB’s website.

The M&E result is submitted to the cabinet.

Information Publication

Major Challenges

• In some components and sub-components, appropriate indicators are hard to find, especially abstract sub-component.

• For example, “Family Role” and “Family Ties” subcomponents in “Warn and Loving Family” component. The “Moral mind” in “Health” component.

Indicator setting

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Major Challenges (Cont.)

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Data is not available continuously, or 2-3 years lagging behind, especially social data.

Data is not available in some subcomponent, for example, “Biodiversity” aspect in sub-component “Ecological System”

Most of the regional and local data is not available.

Database

Major Challenges (Cont.)

• Weighting is still in debate.

• Appropriate benchmarks are very hard to set in some indicators, for example;• Situation changes and affect the benchmarking,

for example, drug crime rate.

• There is no widely except standard to be used as a benchmark, for example, “poverty incident” and “savings”

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Weighting and benchmarking

The Root Causes

Indicator setting

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Hard to identify an indicator which data needed for M&E is available.

The Root Causes (Cont.)

Database

Organizations responsible for data collecting do not realize the importance of the monitoring and evaluation.

Budget and personnel capacity are inadequate.

There is no responsible organization for regional and local data collecting.

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The Root Causes (Cont.)

Weighting and benchmarking

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There is no consensus conclusion or widely accepted theory in putting weight on each indicator.

The concerned situations change and affect the benchmarking.

There is no widely accepted standard/target/best practice to use as a benchmark, such as “short term foreign debt”, which indicate economic stability .

Good Practices

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GHI Review

NESDB reviews the components, sub-components and indicators of GHI, which is formulated prior to the Tenth Plan. GHI is revised to be in line with the situation during the Eleventh Plan, and to be the appropriate index for the Eleventh Plan Evaluation.

Good Practices (Cont.)

Indicators Some indicators has been deleted, such as the underground water, in balanced ecological system component, which the data is no longer collected.

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Some indicator has been changed to a more appropriate one, such as the “divorce rate” in Warm and Loving Family has been changed to “violence in the family”, because there are more couples living together without marriage registration.

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Good Practices (Cont.)

Indicators

Some indicator are added so that the subcomponent can be measured more thoroughly, for example, the “short term foreign debt“ indicator, which is important for measuring economic stability.

Some indicators has been changed their benchmarks, such as, increasing the benchmark of “community with welfare” from 60% to 100% because the current situation is 91.1% which is already higher than the benchmark.

Regional and local organizations, such as province and community, are empowered for performing data collecting, monitoring and evaluation by themselves.

Good Practices (Cont.)

NESDB is on the process of formulating provincial GHI through the local people’s participation.

The provincial database system will be also developed.

Provincial GHI’s pilot project will be launched in 8 provinces.

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Provincial GHI

Thank You