Tracking planning and implementation interventions across regions and institutional boundaries: Failure to establish a uniform reporting language across government

Abstract

There is a growing concern that performance in service delivery does not match the rate of progress required for poverty reduction. These concerns are focusing attention on the need for a better understanding of ‘planning and implementation effectiveness’, what works, what does not, in which contexts, and why. Large volumes of information are currently produced by different processes and systems established as a result of an ever increasing concern with accountability and effectiveness of service delivery by government. Disparate information flows and a lack of alignment in semantic meaning that is differences in opinion of what constitutes a programme or project between established systems imply that information across organizations cannot be easily aggregated or compared for purposes of broader, cross-regional policy formulation, joint action and budget analysis. These factors often contribute to the confusion surrounding the prioritization of competing goals and dilute government alignment when responding to service delivery challenges. The paper describes the establishment of a uniform reporting language across government as a likely enabler to improve communication of programme and project.