Estimating project impact; cost –effective methods

Cost effective analysis enables policymakers to compare alternative

projects on the basis of the cost of producing given output, or set of
outputs.
The method can be used in any situation where the outputs can be clearly
defined and are easily measurable. E.g, in constructing housing,
improving reading skills,
Providing credit to fishermen or small artisians

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Cont’
The procedure is usually relatively simple and economical because
information on both costs and outputs can be obtained from project
records.
Cost –effective analysis is widely used for health, education, human
resource and other social development programs.
It may also be used to compare the costs of producing particular output
through various projects. When weights are assigned to different
indicators, the exercise is called cost –utility analysis.

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Computing the cost –effectiveness ratio
The cost- effectiveness ratio (R) is defined as R= C/U
Where C=the averagage cost per case and U the average number of units
of outputs produced per case.
E.g In evaluation of former Kenya institute of education television
program, the average cost per student of using television to teach math
was $22, and the average math test gain score was 3.7 points.
The cost effectiveness ratio was therefore
 R=C/U

 R= 22/3.7=$ 5.9
Cost –effectiveness analysis is used to judge whether a certain kind of
project is worthwhile and to select the best version of the project.

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Applying cost effectiveness analysis to social programs
Address certain methodological issues:
Ensures that the appropriate indicator is selected
Ensures that all costs have been identified and quantified; however, some
costs can be overlooked that may include.
 goods and services provided free or below cost;
 time and money spent by clients getting or waiting at the project
facility; e.g in a hospital.
 The opportunity cost of the time spent by participants e.g in a self-
help construction project
 social costs such as environmental degradation, health hazards, family
dislocation, community conflict, etc
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Cont’
Output indicators from different projects must be comparable; there
may be significant qualitative or qualitative differences between the
programs with apparently similar outcomes.
Relating the scalability of outputs; deal with many social output
indicators, including improvements in the quality of housing,
changes in the health status of a community, the quality of services
provided by health centers and the volumes of loans provided by
micro finances or cooperatives.

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Monitoring and evaluation of impact on social programs
The outputs and benefits of social programs are often difficult to quantify.
For programs such as primary education, rural and health extension, self
help housing etc, the quality of the product is at least as important as the
quantity.
However, most monitoring systems do not look at quality. In programs
that use a participatory planning and implementation approach, some of
the outputs may not even have been defined at the start of the project.

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Cont’
Social programs need to be assessed from the perspective of their
different stakeholders, each of whom may use quite different criteria .
Although conventional monitoring systems assume that a standard set of
indicators can satisfy the information needs of all interested parties, an
adequate monitoring and evaluation system for a social program normally
requires a stakeholders analysis to identify their perspectives.

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cont,

Institutional analysis is used to assess the institutional capacity and

performance of participating agencies and community organizations in
the formulation, implementation, and operation of the project. Its also
used to compare the merits of integrated social development programs
that offer a wide range of services but require complex coordination
arrangements between different agencies.

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Cont’
Beneficiary assessment: these are used to provide regular feedback on
the opinions and experiences of beneficiaries and victims as a project
evolves
Gender analysis techniques; Assessing project impact on women.
Indicates the kinds information required to assess how well project
identification and design respond to women’s needs and enhances their
participation during the implementation.

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Cont;
Rapid Rural appraisal: Rural development practitioners have pioneered
the use of rapid rural appraisal methods for providing rapid and economic
feedback during the appraisal, monitoring and evaluation of rural
projects.
For rural development, and in many other agricultural subsectors, a
primary concern is to find efficient and economical ways to obtain rapid
feedback on the implementation , accessibility and impacts of projects
affecting large numbers of rural families. In small and widely scattered
communities.


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