AN EVALUATION ACTIVITIES OF THE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL - FAMILY PLANNING EVALUATION DIVISION

EVALUATION CONDUCTED THROUGH ONSITE VISITS NOTES THAT THE QUALITY OF FAMILY PLANNING EVALUATION DIVISION (FPED) CONSULTANT WORK IS QUITE HIGH, WITH OUTSTANDING COMPETENCE IN STATISTICAL TABULATION, ANALYSIS, AND INTERPRETATION OF SURVEY DATA. THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS WERE MADE: 1)AID SHOULD CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE PROGRAM; 2)THE ROLE OF CDC SHOULD BE DEFINED MORE BROADLY; 3)MAJORITY OF FPED INTERNATIONAL ASSISTANCE SHOULD BE DIRECTED TOWARD, BUT NOT LIMITED TO LATIN AMERICA; 4)CDS SHOULD BE CAUTIOUS IN DEVELOPING DATA PROCESSING, LOGISTICAL OR OTHER SYSTEMS THAT ARE TOO COMPLEX FOR THE SITUATION IN WHICH THEY ARE TO BE USED, OR WHICH ARE TOO EXPENSIVE TO BE MAINTAINED AFTER THE WITHDRAWL OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE; 5)FPED SHOULD INCREASE THE UTILIZATION OF CONSULTANT TEAMS TO STRENGTHEN THE PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT AND ADMINISTRATION COMPONENTS OF THE CONSULTATIONS, ESPECIALLY WHEN COMMON SOURCES OF DATA ARE TO BE USED FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES; 6)CDS SHOULD PROVIDE TUTORIALS IN ATLANTA FOR A FEW CAREFULLY SELECTED LATIN AMERICANS TO LEARN SPECIFIC SKILLS NEEDED IN THEIR RESPECTIVE PROGRAMS; 7)CDS SHOULD PLACE GREATER EMPHASIS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL COMPETENCE IN DATA ANALYSIS BY FOCUSING ON AT LEAST ONE KEY INDIVIDUAL IN EACH ORGANIZATION COUNSELED; 8)FPED SHOULD ADOPT FOLLOW-UP PROCEDURES WHICH WILL INCREASE THE FEEDBACK IT RECIEVES FROM ITS REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS; 8)AID SHOULD GIVE THOUGHT TO WAYS OF INCREASING THE AWARENESS OF USAID MISSIONS OF THE POSSIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS OF FPED; 9)FPED STAFF SHOULD CONTINUE TO ATTEND SCIENTIFIC AND PROFESSIONAL MEETINGS, NOT ONLY FOR THEIR OWN DEVELOPMENT, BUT ALSO AS A MEANS OF STRATEGIC DISSEMINATION OF THE EVALUATIVE AND DATA ANALYSIS METHODS WHICH ARISE FROM THEIR CONSULTATION WORK UNDER THE CONTRACT.