Quarterly Performance Report: April 1, 2013 – June 30, 2013

The Program aims to improve the effectiveness of development assistance interventions and shape longer-term strategic direction and decision making, particularly in regard to the implementation of the Feed the Future (FTF) and Global Climate Change (GCC) initiatives. The MEP has a three-pronged strategy, which includes monitoring and evaluating EGO programs, measuring USG "whole-of-government" progress towards EGO programs, and measuring country-level progress towards M&E of EGO priorities. The Program is led by DevTech Systems, Inc. (DevTech), the prime contractor, in partnership with three Guatemalan organizations: the Instituto de Agricultura, Recursos Naturales y Ambiente, Landivar University (IARNA), the Asociación de Investigación y Estudios Sociales (ASIES), and Geotecnológica (GEO). During the quarter, the MEP Team achieved several results. The first result was the development of statistical tools for baseline, mid-term, and final-term data collection. The MEP Team updated and expanded USAID's Poverty Assessment Tool (PAT) using Guatemala's Household Expenditure Survey (ENCOVI) 2011. This instrument was designed to estimate expenditure of households surveyed as a proxy for household income and to define the baselines required by the projects' approved Performance Monitoring Plans (PMPs). The second result was the increase in local capacity in monitoring and evaluation, including data collection of national and sub-national indicators. The MEP Team reviewed food and nutritional security policies and laws in relation to the dissemination of specialized information for decision making or the provision of publicly available information. Work meetings were held with the National Statistics Institute (INE) to determine the most expeditious route for the creation of the Sector Coordination Office for Food Security and Nutrition Statistics (OCSE SAN). Both the INE and the Secretariat for National Food Security and Nutrition (SESAN) have expressed their willingness to implement this initiative. The third result was the development and delivery of clearinghouse, GIS, environmental compliance, and other M&E services. The MEP Team has invested significant efforts in reviewing and updating existing M&E tools and developing new ones to support the implementation of the FTF and GCC initiatives. The fourth result was the conduct of mission program and project evaluations and the reporting of results. The MEP Team conducted evaluations of several USAID programs and projects, including the rural value chain programs implemented by USAID implementing partners ANACAFE and AGEXPORT. The fifth result was the provision of monitoring and evaluation services for other USAID/Guatemala offices upon request. The MEP Team provided M&E services to other USAID offices, including the Health and Education Office (HEO) and the Democracy and Governance Office (DGO). Overall, the MEP has made significant progress in supporting USAID/Guatemala's EGO and implementing the FTF and GCC initiatives. The Program's achievements demonstrate its commitment to improving the effectiveness of development assistance interventions and shaping longer-term strategic direction and decision making.