USAID/Ghana Evaluate for Health Quarterly Report, January 1 – March 31, 2016

The project aims to improve accountability, learning, and evidence-based decision-making within the Health, Population and Nutrition Office (HPNO) of the Ghana Health Service (GHS). Evaluate for Health also seeks to build Ghana's local capacity to sustain monitoring, evaluation, and research functions, and provides overall evaluation support to the entire health portfolio. During the reporting period of January 1 to March 31, 2016, Evaluate for Health made significant progress in various components of the project. In Component 1: Evaluation Studies and Assessments, the team developed a "key findings" brochure for the Health Services Baseline Survey, which was printed and distributed to GHS senior management. The team also drafted a concept note and budget for the HPNO IP Showcase, a two-day event that will focus on IP activities and results on Day 1 and USAID-sponsored research on Day 2. In Component 2: Performance Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Assistance, Evaluate for Health submitted a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to GHS's Policy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (PPME) and HPNO, proposing a mechanism to give IPs access to District Health Information Management System (DHIMS 2) data. The team also hosted an after-action review in January for HPNO and IPs to discuss 2015 results and recommendations for 2016, and prepared a Data Quality Assessment (DQA) report that includes actions proposed and taken by IPs to improve data quality. In Component 3: Strengthening Local Capacity for Research Assessment, Evaluate for Health submitted an Organizational Capacity Development Plan in January and completed the first workshops at Dodowa and Navrongo Health Research Centers in March on knowledge management and strategic communications. Major challenges faced by the project include IP scheduling, which continues to be a major challenge due to competing priorities. However, the team has tried to be sensitive to their availability to avoid overburdening them. Lessons learned from the project include the importance of a close partnership with GHS to HPNO portfolio success and sustainability, as well as the need for practical exercises to engage and sustain the attention of adult learners in future workshops. The project has made significant progress in various components, including the development of a "key findings" brochure for the Health Services Baseline Survey, the drafting of a concept note and budget for the HPNO IP Showcase, and the submission of a draft MOU to GHS's PPME and HPNO. The team has also completed the first workshops at Dodowa and Navrongo Health Research Centers on knowledge management and strategic communications.