A comprehensive monitoring and reporting system will be developed as Programme P1.1, “Monitoring and Reporting on the Implementation of RSAP IV, Protocol, and SDGs” of the RSAP IV, which will take into account the principles and provisions of the SADC’s Strategy Development, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Policy (2012). The framework for assessing achievements of the RSAP IV interventions and impacts of the resultant outcomes, which will be used during the mid-term review of the RSAP IV, will consist of three parts. These include monitoring, evaluation and reporting (ME&R). This framework will be based on the established measurable and verifiable milestones and indicators on the identified programme activities and expected outcomes. These will be guided by the principles of the “Theory of Change”, where the activities necessary to achieve the long-term goal of the RSAP IV are documented, the resources needed for the activities’ implementation are identified, documented and sourced, and the indicators to assess the performance of each activity to achieve the interventions are clearly spelt out as indicated in Annex 1. The selection of the milestones and indicators conform to the basic rules of simplicity, timeliness and cost effectiveness. The reporting framework for the RSAP IV will be synchronised with those of other SADC Water Division programmes and activities. A Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) framework will be designed to present the overview of the RSAP IV at a glance, and illustrate how each intervention contributes to the achievement of the strategic objectives along the three strategic areas. 7.1 MONITORING SYSTEM The purpose of the monitoring system is to enable the SADC Member States, RBOs/SWIs, the SADC Secretariat as well as the ICPs working in the SADC Region to: • • • • have internal and external accountability over the resources utilised; facilitate the evaluation process of the RSAP IV Intervention outputs and outcomes; learn from the RSAP IV implementation experiences to improve future intervention planning; and make informed decisions on the future of the RSAP initiatives. RE AR D T U W TO REGIONAL STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN IV (2016 - 2020) MUNITY SOUTHERN M CO AF T VE N DE LOPM EN CA RI SA C O M MO N FU The status of interventions will be monitored through regular updates of the data sheets, presenting the progress made, key results and project expenditures. The status will be recorded into the M&E Framework, for each intervention cell, on the basis of a traffic light system, using the following colour coding: green (completed), yellow (on track), red (implementation problem) and blue (planned). 7.2 EVALUATION SYSTEM During the mid-term review of the RSAP IV, the data and information from the monitoring system of the RSAP IV programme will be used to assess the achievement of the performance indicators for each activity and draw conclusions on five main aspects of the RSAP IV interventions: namely, relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability. 7.2.1 PROGRESS REVIEWS AND REPORTING Monitoring and evaluation are of limited value unless they are linked to clear reporting mechanisms. As with the RSAP I, RSAP II and RSAP III, the RSAP IV will also be subjected to a mid-term review, to be held in the second half of 2018. The objectives of the mid-term review are to: • • • assess the progress made with the implementation of RSAP IV, both at project and programme levels; learn from and build on the processes initiated during the first half of the RSAP IV implementation phase; and provide strategic guidance to improve the implementation of the RSAP IV programmes in the second implementation phase. The mid-term review will be based on consultations with relevant stakeholders including: the SADC Secretariat, Member States, implementing agencies, RBOs/SWIs, NGOs, ICPs and selected experts. Further, the SADC Water Division envisages producing annual progress reports on the implementation of the RSAP IV, culminating in a final report documenting both achievements and shortcomings. A Vehicle to implement the Water Component of the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 38