Microenterprise Results Reporting (MRR) Quarterly Report, Oct - Dec 2012

The project is contracted to the DAI/Nathan Group joint venture (DNG) through Task Order number AID-OOA-TO-10-00050 under the Global Business, Trade and Investment II (GBTI II) IQC. The project's main objective is to collect and analyze funding data on USAID's global investments and impact in microenterprise development. The MRR project has four main tasks: a) Tracking of Estimated and Actual Obligations; b) Microfinance, Enterprise Development and Enabling Environment Institution Tracking; c) USAID Microenterprise Results Reporting; and d) Microenterprise Results Reporting Website. The project maintains the MRR website, an integrated web-based database to collect and process accurate, timely information from missions and partners on funding, institutional data, results, and other requirements. During the quarter, the project submitted the Annual Workplan for Year 3, as well as the annually updated MRR Operations Manual, accompanied by a newly developed MRR Technical and Database Administration Guide, and a Quarterly Report covering the July – September 2012 period. All deliverables are on schedule, per the table below. The MRR project's quarterly performance is in sync with the timetable in Annex A – Project Timeline. Task A – Tracking of Estimated and Actual Obligations – is the first phase of MRR's annual data collection cycle, which involves tracking USAID obligations by reaching out to USAID Missions and Offices who may have obligated funding towards microenterprise programming during a given fiscal year. MRR launched FY 2012 Mission level data launch on October 17, 2012, which is significantly earlier than in previous years. As of the end of the quarter, MRR had collected and verified data from roughly 25 of the 36 surveyed Missions, and reached about 75% of target for reported microenterprise-related funding in FY 2012. Data collection and verification continued into the current quarter. Task B – Microfinance, Enterprise Development and Enabling Environment Institution Tracking – involves partner-level outreach and tracking, where MRR collects results data from USAID implementing partners to report to Congress on the impact and outreach of USAID's investments in microenterprise programming during the given fiscal year. The MRR project has made significant progress in collecting and analyzing data on USAID's microenterprise investments. The project's quarterly performance is in line with the project's objectives, and the project is on track to meet its deliverables. The MRR project's data collection and analysis efforts will continue into the current quarter, with a focus on collecting and verifying data from USAID Missions and partners. The MRR project's website is an integrated web-based database that collects and processes accurate, timely information from missions and partners on funding, institutional data, results, and other requirements. The website is easily accessible on both the intranet and internet, and it provides a platform for MRR to report to Congress on USAID's microenterprise investments. The MRR project's data collection and analysis efforts are critical to understanding the impact and outreach of USAID's investments in microenterprise programming. The project's quarterly performance is a key indicator of its progress towards meeting its objectives, and it will continue to be a critical component of the project's overall success.