Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project (CS:MAP) Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Plan

The project aims to foster a more legitimate, accountable, and resilient Nepali civil society capable of advancing the public interest. CS:MAP will achieve its goal through four objectives: Strengthening the enabling environment for civil society and media through grants and technical assistance that support civil society organizations (CSOs) and media at the national level. This includes supporting the adoption or amendment of five key laws, increasing citizens' positive perception and understanding of CSOs and media, and enhancing satisfaction from Government of Nepal (GON) stakeholders regarding CSO and media self-regulation. Improving civil society and media capacity for effective policy advocacy and government engagement through grants and technical assistance contributing to Sajha Sabhas convening CSOs, media, and government, and improving the research capacity of CSOs with studies on issues affecting marginalized people. Enhancing coordinated and effective civil society and media oversight of public resource use and public service delivery through grants and technical assistance that support a 20 percent increase in citizens' satisfaction with regard to government service delivery across a set of common standards, a 25 percent increase in citizen awareness of social accountability mechanisms, and a 30 percent increase in Nepali citizens, including women and minorities, using Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for oversight. Strengthening the organizational capacity and sustainability of selected CSOs working in USAID priority sectors to advance local solutions through work with intermediary service organizations (ISOs) that support local CSOs and media organizations in all CS:MAP districts. This includes increasing their organizational development scores by an average of 15 percent, having a total of 40 new instances of receiving funds, and updating their policies, governance practices, and programming to be more inclusive of women, youth, and marginalized populations. In addition to the four main objectives, CS:MAP-Human Rights Strengthening (CS:MAP-HRS) was planned for implementation for one year within the CS:MAP timeframe. The objective of CS:MAP-HRS was to improve enforcement of fundamental human rights enshrined in the Constitution. This included assessing the government's implementation of human rights commitments and human rights laws mandated by the Constitution of Nepal, building the capacity of CSOs to monitor and report on them, and strengthening the fragile relationship between CSOs and the government. The project is guided by FHI 360's monitoring and evaluation strategies and principles, including transparency, accountability, participation, and feedback to project managers during project implementation. The Monitoring and Evaluation Plan is an integral part of the Monitoring and Evaluation system under CS:MAP, serving to establish and strengthen linkages between effective program implementation and the achievement of results.