MONITORING AND EVALUATION REPORT FOR CCF LIBERIA:

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ABIDJAN 000557 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W AND PRM/AFR/CACHANG GENEVA FOR RMA STATE PASS TO USAID/OFDA MONROVIA FOR SEIRIZ AND USAID/OFDA/RQUINBY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF PHUM IV LI SUBJECT: MONITORING AND EVALUATION REPORT FOR CCF LIBERIA: SPRMCO06CA145 ¶1. Summary: The Abidjan-based Refugee Coordinator (RefCoord) for West Africa conducted a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) assessment of the PRM-funded NGO, Christian Children's Fund (CCF) during a visit to Liberia from May 4-11. RefCoord visited their offices in Monrovia and Zorzor and a CCF project site in Fissebu, Lofa County. CCF appears on target to meet their overall goal, "to promote the healthy development and community reintegration of war-affected girls and women in high-risk areas of western Liberia." RefCoord recommends continued PRM funding to CCF as appropriate given the difficult and continuing challenges returning women and children face in post-crisis Liberia. End Summary. ¶2. The Abidjan-based Refugee Coordinator (RefCoord) for West Africa visited Liberia from May 3-11 to conduct a monitoring and assessment mission of PRM-funded NGOs. This report covers the Christian Children's Fund (CCF) project, "Safeguarding the Future Effectively (SAFE) in Bong and Lofa Counties. RefCoord also met with CCF staff in January and visited their offices in Monrovia and Zorzor and project site in Fissebu, Lofa County. RefCoord met with CCF staff Richard Thwaites (Country Director),Mendy Marsh (Program Coordinator),and other CCF staff based in Zorzor. RefCoord also discussed CCF's activities with UNHCR staff Raouf Mazou (Acting Representative) and Cesar Ortega (Head of Voinjama Field Office). OBJECTIVES AND INDICATORS -------------- ¶3. OBJECTIVE 1: To build resilience and reduce mental and physical health morbidities associated with gender-based violence (GBV) and the effects of war among 8,000 girls and women in five districts in Bong and Lofa Counties through psychosocial support, referral, and education. - CCF has met indicators one and two; - CCF has only organized one reconciliation ceremony. CCF was in the process of organizing two more ceremonies in the coming weeks. CCF reports slow progress due to issues of proper organization of such local ceremonies, explaining that these ceremonies often have the reverse intended effect on a community and decided to put more effort into careful planning of community ceremonies. ¶4. OBJECTIVE 2: To reduce young women's dependency on transactional sex for financial gain by providing referrals for vocational skills training and disbursing educational/livelihood grants to 500 project beneficiaries at high risk for Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA). - CCF has met the first indicator; - CCF has not completed post testing of trainees under the second indicator, but has exceeded the number of targeted beneficiaries and will report on knowledge gain in final report. CCF admitted to some problems in conducting pre and post-tests due to low literacy of targeted beneficiaries; - CCF intends to start grant distributions in mid-May; - Monitoring of grant distributions is only possible after all beneficiaries receive support. This will not be possible by the end of the current project. CCF reported that community workers have already received training for long-term monitoring and the CCF will be able to follow-up as part of a USAID funded project. ¶5. OBJECTIVE 3: To improve the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of men, women, youth (among 70% of beneficiaries) and GBV response referral points in the health, legal and security sectors for GBV prevention and response through training and sensitization efforts using multiple media. - CCF is meeting its target of weekly sensitization activities but reports reluctance from interagency partners to hold bi-monthly district level training sessions. CCF stated most partners will not participate in activities if there are no sitting fees or food provided; - CCF reported it will meet the indicator on formation of 50 CPC with the appropriate protection systems in place; - CCF has met its indicator for training 100 healthcare providers (20 per district); - CCF had difficulties meeting the indicator on the number of dialogues per month/per district (total of 20) in the first half of the project. However, CCF managed to get support from its offices early in 2007 and was able to organize 18 dialogues in April; ABIDJAN 00000557 002 OF 003 - CCF has met their target on training of female/male peer advocates; - CCF has achieved a good working relationship with one lawyer working with the Association of Female Liberian Lawyers (AFELL). Given the difficulties most NGOs have getting cooperation with AFELL, this is a positive result; - CCF has met its target for training of security personnel. PROGRAM ISSUES -------------- ¶6. Cross-cutting Goals: CCF's activities specifically target vulnerable women and children and aim to involve the larger community and public officials in supporting these efforts. ¶7. Coordination: CCF has strong links with many NGOs and international organization partners in all activities. CCF also works closely with governmental partners, particularly the Ministry of Gender and Development via the National Gender-based Violence Task Force. ¶8. Effective Use of Funds: GBV remains one of the leading concerns in Liberia and NGOs and other organizations report there has been much progress over the last couple of years in Liberia. They report greater involvement from the government, a series of successful national sensibilization campaigns, and major legal reform, such as the anti-rape law. CCF has played an active role alongside other NGOs pushing this issue forward and continued progress in this area is possible and needed. CCF's office in Zorzor enables it to reach target populations in a region of the country where significant refugee returns continue and where the majority of IDP returns have occurred. ¶9. Financial and Personnel Systems: CCF Country Director, Richard Thwaites, told RefCoord that fraud is endemic in working in Liberia but said they had successfully identified a problem with a previous financial manager who was fired for financial wrongdoing. CCF appears to have adequate oversight and monitoring of its financial system and personnel policies are well established in Liberia. ¶10. HQs Oversight: CCF staff reported no visits from CCF Headquarters during the past year and only a few technical visits from their regional office in Banjul. ¶11. Coordination with PRM: CCF staff work very closely and openly with PRM staff in Abidjan and Washington. ¶12. Security: CCF's office in Zorzor was broken into earlier in the spring. Apparently, UNDP parked some vehicles in their compound during a road rehabilitation project. The road passes by CCF's Zorzor office and leads directly to the Guinea border. Intruders stole one or two of the UNDP vehicles and some material that Thwaites described as mostly "junk." The thieves attempted to cross the border to Guinea and engaged in a shoot out with Nigerian UNMIL officers. One of the dead intruders was found with a bag that belonged to an ARC staff member who had been robbed just weeks before in Voinjama. No other major incidents were reported. ¶13. Problems: Thwaites said that most development funding and agencies were not yet in Liberia to ensure a smooth transition from relief to development. He mentioned there seemed a general frustration as well at the national level with NGOs, and that there was discussion to eliminate their tax free status on fuel and expat salaries. Thwaites said such changes would significantly drive up expenses for the NGO community should they occur. COMMENT -------------- ¶14. CCF continues to be a strong partner in Liberia. Although there are some gaps in meeting its project indicators, this is not fully representative of the importance of CCF's contribution to child and female protection issues in the country and CCF appears on target to meet its overall project objective. Despite impressive progress throughout Liberia in a number of sectors, women and children still face particular difficulties in a country where good jobs are scarce, food resource stocks are recovering, and important sectors such as health care and the rule-of-law depend on external support to keep them ABIDJAN 00000557 003 OF 003 functioning. The PRM-funded SAFE project, combined with CCF's other activities in Liberia, is playing a key role to ensure these issues are addressed nationally and that some response and protection mechanism remains in place to support victims. RefCoord strongly recommends continued PRM funding to CCF as appropriate. HOOKS