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Developing a monitoring and learning plan is critical for ensuring programme success. It helps to guide implementation and keep a VAWG programme on track and describes processes and activities that different programme parters will carry out to collect, manage, analyse and report data on an ongoing basis throughout the programme implementation. It can help to identify any implementation issues at an early stage, understand how changing circumstances are affecting the programme, allow for timely learning about what is working, and support decisions about any necessary programme adaptations. A…

Capturing and sharing learning is important to develop high-quality, evidence-based programming to end violence against women and girls (VAWG). Learning in VAWG programmes can take many different forms, including through documenting and sharing innovating approaches, documenting practice-based learning, operational research, and impact evaluations. Sharing these insights widely helps contribute to a collective pool of knowledge that benefits a wide range of stakeholders, including policymakers, practitioners, and researchers worldwide. It helps others adapt and scale effective strategies to…

Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is critical for understanding and improving programmes that aim to end violence against women and girls (VAWG). M&E helps to track the effectiveness of programmes, manage risks, and understand what works to prevent and respond to violence globally. In simple terms, monitoring involves collecting regular data during implementation to track programme activities in line with the design and work plan, and monitor risks and unintended consequences. Evaluation looks at whether the programme achieves its goals and why, by examining everything from the activities to the…

Participatory monitoring and evaluation (PME) is a process to ensure direct engagement with civil society and rights-holders in the monitoring and evaluation of a programme. It ensures that a wide representation of local stakeholders and community members, including women’s rights activists and organisations, are actively engaged and participate meaningfully in programming. A participatory approach involves engagement at different stages of M&E: design of M&E framework, design of and conducting data collection, data analysis and reporting. Practice-based knowledge lies at the core of this…

Addressing violence against women and girls requires high-quality, disaggregated data. Existing data can offer crucial insights into the prevalence, patterns, causes and consequences of different forms of VAWG as well as the impacts of initiatives to prevent and respond to violence. Several countries regularly collect nationally representative data on VAWG through surveys (for example on VAWG prevalence and risk factors) as well as administrative data (to measure incidents reported to the police, health facilities and other services). However, there are significant gaps in the collection of…

Selecting an appropriate evaluation strategy is essential for generating credible and reliable evidence to answer questions about a programme’s performance and impact. This evidence can be used to improve the current programme, develop plans for scale-up, and inform the design of future programmes. An evaluation strategy should be identified early in the programme design phase to ensure sufficient budget, time and resources are allocated to fulfil the scope and complexity of the evaluation. VAWG programmes often involve non-linear and complex change. Evaluating programmes of this nature…

Improving data on violence against women and girls (VAWG) is essential for addressing this critical global issue which has negative effects on women, their families and communities. High-quality, comparable data on different types of VAWG is crucial for understanding the extent and nature of violence, supporting evidence-based policies and programmes to prevent and respond to it, advocating for change and tracking progress. Efforts to improve VAWG data have gained momentum globally, with an increasing number of countries investing in data to prevent and address violence against women. Recent…

A key part of robust monitoring and evaluation is to design indicators to track change and measure progress towards programme goals. An indicator is a quantitative or qualitative measure used to assess whether or not a specified result of a programme or project has been achieved. Good indicators are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound (SMART).
Indicators are only as good as the quality of the data used to measure them, so it’s important to consider the context of interventions when designing them. If it’s not feasible to collect data for an indicator, or the data that…

Collecting data on violence against women and girls (VAWG) is an extremely sensitive issue – legally, culturally, and socially. Robust ethical guidelines need to be in place to ensure the safety of respondents and the research team. Data collection activities are critical opportunities to make space for affected populations to have their voices heard and for women and girls to engage in VAWG programmes. However, discussing violence can be highly sensitive and potentially traumatising, particularly if survivors are revisiting past experiences. Collecting information from women and girls about…

As the largest global effort to end VAWG, Spotlight Initiative was uniquely positioned to build a culture of learning and knowledge exchange across countries/regions that could be used to inform effective programming and policies on EVAWG across the globe. Key approaches and learning include:

Developing and implementing a robust Knowledge Management Strategy, which set out Spotlight Initiative's ambition to be an innovation platform for EVAWG, harnessing knowledge, solutions and expertise. Led by the Spotlight Initiative Secretariat at the global level, it outlined the key knowledge…