in Lemi-Kua Sub-City, Addis Ababa:
Insights for Informed Decision Making
FEATURED PAPER
By Teshome Tamirat, PhD and Misgina Asmelash, PhD
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Abstract
Lack of implementations of appropriate monitoring and evaluation practices in projects results in failure for achieving intended goal. Our study aims to investigate the impact of implementing monitoring and evaluation practices on performance of urban safety net program in Lemi- kura sub-city Addis Ababa. The survey used to collect qualitative data from 121 project staff using simple and cluster random sampling method. Descriptive and explanatory research method was applied to guide the analysis. Result showed that demographic variables and their impact on project outcomes revealed clear insights regarding how education, gender, experience, and age among project staff contributed to performance. Gender showed a low impact on performance with a mean score of 1.45, level of education emerged as a critical factor, reflected in a high mean score of 3.93. Higher educational attainment significantly enhances project performance, aligning with previous studies highlighting the importance of education in driving productivity and effectiveness of program outcomes. Working experience of project staff also demonstrated a moderate positive influence with a mean score of 1.59, yet there exists variability among individuals indicating experience alone is not a definitive predictor of performance. Variation in age displayed a slight positive correlation with performance, but the overall impact of demographic factors on project outcomes was minimal, indicating other factors like skills and organizational culture may play a more substantial role. Furthermore, the correlation analysis for M&E practices and project performance outcomes indicated varying strengths of relationships for the impacts. A strong positive correlation (0.801) was exhibited between skilled staff and performance that underscored the significance of investing in human resources. Conversely, the relationship between planning and budgeting as key M&E practice and performance was weak exhibiting (0.135) that emphasize that improvements in these areas alone may not yield significant impacts on performance. Stakeholder engagement in project showed moderate significance and impact on performance with (0.337), reinforcing its importance in enhancing project outcomes.
The regression analysis further corroborated that skilled human resources significantly impact and contribute to increased family income, financial inclusion, and food security, while M&E planning and budgeting showed negligible effects. The findings underscore skill development practice for project staff is pivotal for success of the Urban Safety Net Program, while plan and budget allocation practice need refinement to enhance the effectiveness. The critical role of effective monitoring and evaluation practices in driving positive project outcomes, particularly in enhancing family income and financial inclusion. The complexities surrounding food security and healthcare access point to the necessity of a holistic approach that considers multiple influencing factors.
Keywords: Evaluation, Monitoring, Outcome, Performance, Safety Net
INTRODUCTION
Ethiopia is the second populous nation in Africa with over 120 million in which the population are growing at faster rate encountering diverse social, economic and environmental problems (Degefa, 2018[1]). The complex socio-economic problems together with human induced conflicts are causing large number of peoples to migrate into the urban area especially to the capital city of Addis Ababa (Gebrselassie, 2020[2]).
The overall national unemployment rate in urban areas accounts for 17.1 percent, but this is higher in Addis Ababa by 23.6 percent (OCHA, 2019[3]). Hence, one-fifth of Ethiopia’s urban population in Addis Ababa live with poverty, so addressing the socio-economic problems is crucial for ensuring sustainable livelihood development (UNDP, 2018[4]). The social public protection policy is used as roadmap for addressing poverty, vulnerability and inequality in order to reduce food in security and poverty (Chala, 2019[5]). The Urban Safety Net and Job Creation Program now support delivery of a predictable, timely, and conditional and unconditional cash transfers (FDRE, 2015[6]).
More…
To read entire paper, click here
How to cite this work: Tamirat, R., and Asmelash, M. (2025). Perceived Impact of Monitoring and Evaluation Practices on Outcome Performance of Productive Safety New Program in Lemi-Kua Sub-City, Addis Ababa: Insights for Informed Decision Making; PM World Journal, Vol. XIV, Issue VII, July. Available online at https://pmworldlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pmwj154-Jul2025-Tamirat-Asmelash-safety-net-program-paper-2.pdf
About the Authors
Dr. Teshome Tamirat
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Dr. Teshome Tamirat, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, holds a PhD in Forest Ecology and an MA in Project Management. He currently serves as the Department Head for Forestry at the Ethiopian Forestry Development and conducts research across various fields, including agriculture, forestry, and project management. Additionally, he acts as the National Focal Point for the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, focusing on the implementation of the national drought management plan, combating land degradation and related project design and execution. He can be contacted at Tesh4040@gmail.com
Dr. Misgina Asmelash
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Dr. Misgina Asmelash is based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia working at Addis Ababa Civil service University as Lecturer and researcher, specialized in project risk management. PhD in Agricultural Economics and Management; M.Sc. in Rural Development; and BA in Cooperatives Business Management PhD Student at Nanjing Agricultural University. He can be contacted at Misgie2008@yahoo.com
[1] Degefa T. (2008). Understanding the Realities of Urban Poor and their Food Security Situations: A Case Study at Berta Gibi and Geemchu Safar in Addis Ababa City, Ethiopia.
[2] Gebrselassie, Y. H. (2020). Does productive safety net programme contribute to reduce households’ poverty? Evidence from rural Tigrai, Ethiopia. Horn of Africa Journal of Business and Economics, 3(1), 1–18.
[3] OCHA (2019). Ethiopia Humanitarian Bulletin, Issue No 20. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Addis Ababa.
[4] UNDP, 2018. UNDP’s strategic plan implementation, financial performance, and partnerships
[5] Chala, W. (2019). Determinants of Graduation from Safety Net Programme: A Case Study in Chiro District, Oromia National Regional State. PhD Dissertation Submitted to Center for Rural Development of the College of Development Studies, Addis Ababa University.
[6] FDRE (2015). Urban Productive Safety Net Project (UPSNP) of Ethiopia. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
