Risk-Informed Programme Monitoring – Integrating conflict sensitivity and peacebuilding into M&E
This section builds on Module 4 of UNICEF Guidance on Risk-Informed Programming (GRIP) on monitoring, and identifies opportunities to integrate conflict-sensitive and peacebuilding approaches in the design and implementation of results frameworks
Purpose
This section builds on Module 4 of UNICEF Guidance on Risk-Informed Programming (GRIP) on monitoring, and identifies opportunities to integrate conflict-sensitive and peacebuilding approaches in the design and implementation of results frameworks and M&E plans. Ensuring that your results framework captures and responds to conflict risks will not only help to you turn your conflict-sensitive approach from a ‘planning and design’ commitment into ‘actionable programming’, but also support the effective integration of a peacebuilding approach. Table outlines the adaptations needed in results statements and includes examples of results statements and indicators:
Integrating conflict sensitivity and peacebuilding into results frameworks
UNICEF’s risk-informed approach to monitoring can be sharpened to focus on conflict more distinctly when implementing WASH programming in FCCs. GRIP’s Module 4 notes that risk-informed monitoring must be guided by slightly different management questions to those traditionally used in programming – these can be adapted to guide a distinctly conflict sensitive approach:
- How is the situation of children and women changing, including in terms of shifts in conflict risks that can lead to a deepening of deprivation, an erosion of development progress or humanitarian crisis?
- Are we achieving results as planned, including for those elements of programming that build resilience and social cohesion by reducing conflict risk?
Risk-informed monitoring consists of two critical dimensions: situation monitoring, which measures change or lack of change in the condition of children, women and the environment; and programme monitoring, which measures progress made against programme results (results monitoring) and how that progress is being achieved (implementation monitoring) – Figure illustrates the GRIP monitoring framework and opportunities to integrate conflict sensitivity.
- Implementation monitoring is a good entry point to monitor the interactions between your WASH intervention and conflict, and specifically how implementation might be affecting the conflict context; for example, how host communities respond to the prospect of water trucking for a nearby IDP settlement. A key management question to strengthen the conflict sensitivity of the approach could be: how is our implementation affecting the conflict causes, dynamics, and trends identified in our conflict and peace analysis?
- Results monitoring is a good entry point to monitor the capacities of stakeholders engaged in your WASH intervention to prevent and mitigate conflict risks – for example dispute resolution capacity of a WASH committee overseeing a borehole. Key management questions to strengthen the conflict sensitivity of the approach can include: are we building conflict management capacities among key stakeholders? Do we see an increased performance in conflict reduction?
- Situation monitoring is a good entry point to monitor changes in the conflict context and regularly update your conflict and peace analysis. A key management question to strengthen the conflict sensitivity of the approach could include: how are the conflict dynamics identified through the CPA changing/not changing over time?
A key aspect of monitoring the context in FCCs may include monitoring attacks against WASH infrastructure and personnel, and indirect actions that undermine access to WASH.
The Geneva List of Principles on the Protection
of Water Infrastructure is a key reference document prepared for the use of parties to armed conflicts, international organizations, and other practitioners working in the contexts of armed conflicts, including in pre- and post conflict situations
See M&E Tool 3 – Monitoring Attacks against WASH: the Geneva List of Principles for a list of selected principles that can be adapted as relevant context indicators
GRIP Monitoring of situation and programme – a focus on conflict
