The Project Monitoring System in Pakistan: An Evaluation

The primary function of this paper is to analyse and assess the functioning of the monitoring and ongoing evaluation system during project implementation in Pakistan. In other words, it is the appraisal of the effectiveness of the system which is aimed at. However, it should be mentioned here that the system of monitoring and ongoing evaluation which is examined in the paper is related to projects in the agri. culture and rural development fields. This is because of lack of data in other areas. Initially we shall examine some of the terminological concepts in monitoring and evaluation. This is followed by a description of the system as it exists in Pakistan at the national, provincial and project levels. The system’s functioning at the project level is illustrated briefly with a number of case studies. The paper concludes with suggestions for policy-makers to improve the operational effectiveness of the monitoring system in Pakistan.