Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!
14 July 2021
Post No. 204
The Week’s Contents
• July 2021 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1): Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2020-2021 Programmes, Projects and Activities
• Data Analytics of User-generated Content
• Coming this July 2021: Summer Festival of Thoughts and Actions with a Focus on Coronavirus Debt and Deficit Management
… And much more!
Key Messages
• July 2021 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1): Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2020-2021 Programmes, Projects and Activities
Our Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance and Analytics for July 2021 have already started with Impact Feedbacks. These feedbacks are about carrying out activities in order to get the early results or impacts of the programmes and projects we ran during the financial year 2020-2021. They are part of the level one of our July 2021 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment.
We are holding two types of feedback: one from individuals as project supporters and users; and another one from organisations, particularly Africa-based Sister Organisations.
(1) Project Supporters’ and Users’ Experiences (Feedback I)
This week’s Say by Project Supporters and Users will continue our Analytics Month. Project Supporters and Users can start to tell us the experiences they have had with the programmes and projects we have selected to conduct monitoring, evaluation, review, assurance and analytics.
We are asking Project Supporters, Users and other stakeholders to provide their views using their own words rather than we asking them to respond to open or close questions.
To ease the feedback process, we have singled out 12 initiatives from which they can pick and choose to provide their feedback.
They can give us feedbacks (responses and reactions) in the form of rating (numbers), statement (words) and information graphics (infographics like charts, graphs, etc.). This Say is about how they perceived and interacted with the products and services we presented to them over the last 345 days.
(2) Africa-based Sister Organisations’ Voices (Feedback II)
These are too initiatives that we ran in the last financial year; initiatives that directly or indirectly aimed at supporting Africa-based Organisations or just advancing poverty reduction and sustainable development agendas in Africa. These initiatives were in the form of humanitarian appeals, fundraising and Covid-19 campaigns, advocacy work, project planning and advice, etc.
We would like to hear the voices of Africa-based Organisations so that we can know where things went well and where they did not. This will enable us to reflect their needs in future programmes and projects development, while improving the way in which we are working with them in general and tackling the poverty issue in Africa in particular.
Their voices are important to us since we can only help to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development unless those who are concerned with these issues own the process by telling us what they want and how they perceive their own problems rather than we telling them what is good for them.
Like for individuals responding to our request, organisations do not need specific questions to provide their feelings about our work. They can freely give their feedback in numerical, textual and information graphic statements.
To facilitate this feedback process, we have selected 9 initiatives from which they can pick and choose to provide their feedback.
The selected 2020-2021 programmes and projects for the purpose of feedback making our Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance and Analytics are given in the Main Development section of this post.
• Data Analytics of User-generated Content
This is about the analysis of raw and semi-structured data provided or generated by users and other vested parties involved in the delivery of 2020-201 programmes and projects. This type of analytics requires the use of data literacy and methodology as well as analytical skills. As scheduled, this analytics started on 12 July 2021. Before going any further in this presentation, let us briefly explain user-generated content, data analytics and what we are going to do or are doing in this respect.
• • Brief understanding of User-generated Content
To explain User-generated Content (UGC), we are going to refer to Jose Angelo Gallagos’ online article. Gallagos (1) argues that
“User-generated content is any content that has been created, published and/or submitted by users of a brand”.
The content that Gallagos is arguing about can be in the form of images, tweets, videos, text, audio, social media posts, reviews, comments, blog posts, testimonials, feedback, etc.
As far as CENFACS is concerned, we are going to carry out the analytics of user-generated content during their journey to poverty reduction with us. In this respect, we are going to analytically process the content provided by CENFACS’ users, fans, enthusiasts and audience to support CENFACS‘ brand or as they navigate the road to poverty reduction.
• • Meaning of data analytics
To make things easily understandable for our readers and supporters, we have selected the following online definition from investopedia.com (3) which states that
“Data analytics is the science of analysing raw data in order to make conclusions about that information”
We are going to turn to this definition and other notions read within the literature survey about the concept of ‘data analytics’ in order to conduct the analytics of data or content generated by users of our programmes, projects and activities.
• • Data analytics in practice and progress
We are going to combine information technology, statistics and the life of CENFACS over 2020-2021 to discover patterns in data. In doing so, this will help us to improve performance in terms of the kind of work we do in order to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.
In our data analytics process, we are going to undertake the following tasks:
(a) Data mining: extraction of data from unstructured data sources
(b) Data management: creation and management of databases
(c) Statistical analysis: creation of insights from data
(d) Data presentation: sharing of insights with stakeholders through data visualisation.
Where necessary and possible, we may involve online affordable analytics programmes to help in this exercise.
For those users who did not yet respond to our previous requests regarding any of the projects or events they took part or came across, this is the opportunity to share their content and provide their SAY or content or even data so that we can fit it into our analytics work.
For example, the users of Triple Value Initiatives (or All Year Round Projects) can inform us about the progress they have made so far. They can as well share results of collaborations and synergies across these projects. This information or data can be fitted into our Data Analytics Dashboard.
To sum up user-generated content or data analytics will help to provide actionable insights and user trend analysis. It will help to review deliveries and analyse the end-of-financial year performance regarding work undertaken with users. The result of this analytics will feed and align with the contents of our annual review 2020-2021.
To give and share your SAY or content or even data to help us in this analytics, please contact CENFACS.
• Coming this July 2021: Summer Festival of Thoughts and Actions with…
Seven Days of Development in July (7DDJ)
In focus for this year’s 7DDJ: Coronavirus Debt and Deficit Management
How to reduce or cancel financial debts and deficits for the poor to make ends meet
One of the legacies of the coronavirus pandemic is that many people and families, especially those in most need, have become poorer than before the coronavirus crisis began. Many of the ordinary families are in serious financial/income deficit. Those who managed to take a loan; they are also suffering from the burden of loan repayment despite all the talks about the coronavirus financial help.
In these circumstances, there is a need to rethink the financial fate of these poor families on how financial debts and deficits can be reduced or cancelled so that they can make ends meet. There is also a need to ensure that the debts and deficits they hold do not lead to another type of poverty like intergenerational poverty.
To help and work with these COVID-19-indebted and income deficit families to navigate their way out of this problem, we will be holding our seven days of thoughts on this matter. Through these seven days of thoughts, we are going to think ways forward for them to build back and forward their financial position. We shall as well reconsider the already globally known proposition of COVID-19 debt cancellation.
As usual, they will be seven themes for thoughts for seven days, one theme per day, starting from the 22nd to the 28th of July 2021.
The seven days of development in July are the days of thoughts and actions against poverty; in this case against financial or income poverty. The seven themes will be the entry points in order to stimulate thoughts and actions.
We shall soon publish the daily themes and supporting information regarding this year’s Summer Festival of Thoughts and Actions.
Extra Messages
• Reduction of Urban Poverty in Africa
Africa is working on a new urban agenda. As way of supporting CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations working in urban areas of Africa, we are dealing with urban poverty, particularly its root causes and ways of tackling it. However, what is urban poverty?
• • Defining urban poverty
There are many ways in which urban poverty can be conceptualised. One way of conceptualising it has been given by Ana Belén Cano-Hila (4) who argues that
“Urban poverty refers to the set of economic and social difficulties that are found in industrialised cities and that are the result of a combination of processes such as the establishment of comfortable living standards, the increase in individualism, processes of social fragmentation, and the dualization of the labour market, which translates into social dualization”.
These economic and social hardships can also be found in developing cities and towns like those of Africa. At this time of the coronavirus, these difficulties have worsened for the urban poor in some of the cities in Africa. It is not a surprise if the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and others (2) recently argue that
“In many urban and peri-urban areas, poverty and inequality prevent the most vulnerable from accessing nutritious foods,…” (p. 199)
This argument or statement applies to many urban areas of Africa.
• • Urban poverty in the era of COVID-19
At this era of COVID-19, urban poor could be amongst the most suffering from poverty since most towns and cities in Africa have been under draconian rules or simply closed to control and contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. As some of urban poor have their survival dependant on street life, many of them find themselves in even deeper poverty during this COVID-19 time.
So, we are working on the reduction of urban poverty. This work falls within the scope of CENFACS’ 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme. As part of this work, we are supporting our Africa-based Sister Organisations; organisations tirelessly working to tackle the causes of urban poverty such as migration from rural to urban area, lack of opportunities and skills development, lack of affordability and quality education, etc.
For those who would like to add their input to our work, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.
• Holiday with Relief
In focus for 2021 Edition: Restricted Holiday
Holiday with Relief is one of CENFACS useful and helpful ICDP (individual Capacity Development Programme) resources for holiday makers and travellers. The resource, which is published during Spring of every year, can also be used during Summer holiday or any holiday.
It is a wealth of contents as it provides tips, hints, tricks, fixes, enhancements, information, guidance and support in terms of passing holiday for multi-dimensional poor children, young people and families; especially at this time of the coronavirus pandemic. During this time, human happiness and freedom to take and enjoy holiday have been restricted by the requirements of COVID-19 containment of measures.
This year’s Holiday with Relief with its theme of Restricted Holiday is designed to help those in need by having happy and healthy holiday (e.g. Summer holiday) within the old measures of human protection and newly mounted boundaries of the COVID-19 containment measures and restrictions.
Indeed, the way in which everybody passes their holiday has been restricted by a number of factors such as COVID-19, various lockdowns, COVID-19 vaccine, the state of the global economy, climate change requirements, protection of the nature, the exit from the EU, etc.
If any one of these multi-dimensional poor children, young people and families is contemplating a happy and healthy Summer holiday under the constraint of COVID-19 rules; then CENFACS’ Holiday with Relief is the resource to consider in their holiday planning.
The resource is free to order. However, CENFACS would not mind any voluntary donation to help the enormous amount of effort and cost put in by its volunteers to produce it. Your contribution will help to keep it running and update, as well as help the community in need.
To enquire about this resource, just contact CENFACS.
• Impact Monitoring and Evaluation from the perspective of Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs)
This week, we are as well looking at the way in which our Africa-based Sister Organisations perceive impact monitoring and evaluation. It is pointless to mention that theories of monitoring and evaluation used can be the same. But, the context in which these theories can be applied and the perception of the impact monitoring and evaluation could be slightly different.
Because of these differences in perceptions and theory applications, it is a great idea to exchange views with our ASOs on impact monitoring and evaluation of programmes and projects in the African context. This is an enriched and technically valuable exercise which will enable both sides to align works, cement their partnership and continue to develop sustainable initiatives.
We are therefore inviting ASOs that have stories or case studies about their own impact monitoring and evaluation to share with us. Likewise, we are asking to those ASOs that need advisory support in the area of impact monitoring and evaluation to let us know. This is an opportunity to learn and develop best practices and policies in this area.
Need to share your work or experience in terms of impact monitoring and evaluation for the programmes and projects you are running, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.
Main Development
• July 2021 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1): Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2020-2021 Programmes, Projects and Activities
Last week, we said that the name of the July game at CENFACS is Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review and Analytics. In other words, July is the tracking month during which we conduct our Impact monitoring, evaluation, review and analytics of the projects and programmes we delivered during almost last 11 months and 2 weeks.
• • Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance and Analytics in progress
We are still routinely gathering information on all aspects of these programmes and projects related to the above named period. Likewise, we are assessing what these programmes and projects have achieved in relation to the overall objectives we set up for them. Also, we are critically examining, reappraising or reconsidering our objectives and policies to achievements, and figuring out whether there is any progress or set back. Furthermore, we are making sure that the impact process is independently carried out and can help us to assess the health and viability of programmes and projects delivered.
Besides the above four activities (monitoring, evaluation, assurance and review), we are working to find out, interpret and communicate patterns in data in a meaningful way to the work of CENFACS, as part of the analytics activity.
Once we have completed the July Impact monitoring, evaluation, review and analytics; we shall communicate the findings to our respondents and any vested interested parties.
In meantime, we are inviting supporters and users as well as Africa-based Sister Organisations to engage with us in responding and reacting to our poverty relief work in their own words and numbers. They can rate and or provide a statement about these programmes and projects. Where possible, they can provide information graphics (such as charts, graphs, images, etc.).
• • All-in-One Impact Feedbacks: Tell it in your own words, numbers and info-graphics!
There are many types or models of feedback. In this exercise of feedback about the 2020-2021 programmes and projects, we are referring to impact feedback. The latter is about giving feedback from the perspectives of users and African organisations by describing the programmes and projects delivered by CENFACS from their points of view. It is an observation, but not an evaluation from their part. They could describe the impact these programmes and projects have on them and what they like to be different.
The exercise is meant to enable Supporters and Users (you might be one of them) as well as Africa-based Sister Organisations to share with us and others the outcomes and learning experiences resulting from the use or application of the projects we have chosen from our Programmes for feedback purpose.
Please seize this opportunity to provide your own lines of thought for improvement, adjustment and development by sharing with us and others the outcomes and/or experiences resulting from the communications we have had with you and or your use/application or participation/support concerning the programmes and projects below.
We would like to know how effective and efficient did you find in these programmes and projects, and what lessons, experiences did you learn and development for the future of our poverty relief work in coming years.
• • Summer Selection and Collection of 12 Initiatives for Feedback One and 9 for Feedback Two
We would like to inform you that some of the projects selected may have the same title like the year before. However, the focus and contents for this year and each year are completely different. In other words, what matters is not the title of the project or programme, but what is inside them or their insight.
We have selected the following programmes and projects for Feedback I and II.
• • • Feedback I: Projects and Programmes for Feedback from Individuals (Supporters and Users’ Experiences)
There are 12 selected initiatives for Feedback I as follows:
√ The Great Beasts Campaign 2020
√ “A la une” (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature) Campaign 2020
√ COVID-19 Campaign (The Campaign for Resilience against the Coronavirus Pandemic)
√ Zero Income Deficit Campaign
√ Digital and Social Media campaign
√ CENFACS’ 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme
√ Climate Action 2021
√ Build Back and Forward Better Programmes
√ Advice-giving Service
√ All-in-Development Story Telling Series/Programme 2021
√ Arts and Design Project 2021
√ Translation Service
• • • Feedback II: Projects and Programmes for Feedback from Organisations (Africa-based Sister Organisations’ Voices)
We have selected 9 initiatives for Feedback II as follows:
√ The African Sahel 2020 Humanitarian Corridors Appeal
√ The African Sahel and Lake Chad Basin Appeal against Extreme Poverty
√ 2020 Peace Appeal for the Horn of Africa Region
√ Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign with a focus on Agriculturalists and Pastoralists
√ Halving Poverty in Africa’s Central Sahel; Halving Poverty for and with Children in Emergency in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger
√ Ituri Peace Appeal (Peace Appeal for Ituri Region of the North-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo)
√ Tigray Peace Appeal and Re-appeal
√ Protection of the Acutely Food-insecure People in the Central African Sahel and Lake Chad Basin
√ Tigray Food Appeal and Re-appeal
The above selected 2020-2021 programmes and projects may seem a lot for a feedback purpose. However, what we have done is to give to people and organisations the opportunity to choose or pick the one (s) they know or associate with to feedback. For the effectiveness of the feedback, we suggest that people or organisations to pick only 1 or 2 initiatives to give their feedback. Also, it is better to be concise when making your feedback.
• • • How do you provide your feedback?
There are online feedback collection tools (such as survey monkey, visual feedback, type form, online review, etc.). For the simplicity of our Impact Feedback, we would very much appreciate if you could provide us your feedback…
(a) via e-mail, text, phone, web comments or reviews
(b) in your own words, numbers and information graphics (info-graphics).
Please do it by saying the way in which the above named programmes and projects have affected you or the people you recommended to use them or your organisation or sister organisation.
You could rate (by using numbers or percentages or ratios) these programmes and projects or provide a statement (by using words) or even give a chart or table (as information graphics). This is aptly up to you.
Remember, we can only help reduce poverty and do the changes we all want if you tell us what you think; not us only telling you what we do.
Please consider our request for feedback and for your testimonial support.
• • • Need further information about the above programmes and projects before your feedback
Those who have been following the work CENFACS does will be familiar with the above mentioned projects and programmes. They may not need further details about them.
Those who want to provide feedback and would like to request the details or summaries of the above selected programmes and projects prior to their feedback, they are free to make their request to us.
Thank you for considering our request of feedback and for your testimonial support.
This feedback is due by the END OF JULY 2021.
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References
(1) Jose Angelo Gallegos (2016), What is User Generated Content: Complete Guide to UGC & Why you need it
https://www.tinup.com/blog/user-generated-content-definition (accessed July 2021)
(2) FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WEP and WHO (2021), The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021: Transforming food systems for food security, improved nutrition and affordable healthy diets for all, Rome, FAO.
https;//doi.org/10.4060/cb4474en
(3) https://www.investopia.com/terms/d/data-analytics.asp (accessed July 2021)
(4) Cano, Ana Belén (2019), “Urban Poverty”, In the Wiley Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Urban and Regional Studies, edited by A. M. Orum, 1-7, Hoboken, N.J. Wiley-Blackwell
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Help CENFACS keep the Poverty Relief work going this year.
We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis. Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.
One could consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.
Donate to support CENFACS!
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Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.
Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.
We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2021 and beyond.
With many thanks.
