Audit report : population planning II

Audit report covers the period 11/77-6/80 and is based on a review of documents (including a 1977 audit, a 1/80 outreach audit, and a Fall 1978 special evaluation), site visits, and interviews with USAID/P and Government of the Philippines (GOP) personnel. While significant progress has been made in establishing an outreach network to unserved rural areas, the management information system (MIS) remains inadequate and the project often has to rely on data from the Community Outreach Survey (COS) and the World Fertility Survey to verify progress at the goal level. MIS data are unreliable as a basis for both planning and operational decisions and make it impossible to measure the project"s success in promoting contraceptive use. As a result of the inflated figures on acceptors provided by clinics, data credibility has become a serious problem. The Commission on Population (POPCOM"s) problems in staffing and managing MIS operations have played a major role in limiting MIS effectiveness. The data problems have been compounded by the paucity of adequate training for paid outreach staff, coupled with motivational disincentives and low morale caused by funding bottlenecks. Progress in the areas of training, client motivation, and information, education, and communication (IEC) programs has been less than expected. Most regions have lacked IEC supplies and materials to provide prospective users. In addition, POPCOM"s management of contraceptive supplies has been uneven and there have been frequent disparities in the distribution/allocation of oral contraceptives among different regions. Discrepancies have also occurred in the quantities of pills maintained and numbers of users served. Excess stock levels have built up in three regions and in some cases over-age pills have had to be burned. However, data concerning the burning of excess quantities of pills in 1973 were not submitted upon request to the auditors. Delays in releasing funds for outreach regional budgets due to the slow and unwieldy reporting system have also hampered the project. A 6/80 Project Paper for a follow-on project addresses key problems of the current project. Five recommendations are made.