Value for Money in Christian Aid’s Programmes January 2013

Internal & External Drivers Corporate strategy We need a position! Bond & ICAI DFID ?!?!? Programme Systems Financial crisis Off the shelf piece for applications etc AND a place to stand – distinctive to CA Drew on existing thinking, systems and practice – it was relatively easy ToC Leverage

Christian Aid’s position VFM = results / resources Management NOT measurement Downward transparency There is no magic wand! Value for money is about judgement, making better decisions, always seeking a better balance between results and resources

Three key questions Is this result worth this investment? Could we get the same result for less? Could we get better results with the same resources?

What does value look like? Organisational position Scale (number of people reached) Depth (intensity & sustainability of results) Inclusion Contextual definitions Programme staff judgement Comparison with available alternatives Perspectives of women and men living in poverty

“Now I can walk down the street and nobody spits at me” Whose value? “Now I can walk down the street and nobody spits at me” “Now I can walk down the street and nobody spits at me” – the response given by a dalit (lower caste) woman when asked by evaluators about the most important change that she had experienced as a result of participating in a Christian Aid supported project to promote dalit rights. The project had achieved a number of formal, legal successes, including £10,000s of compensation for victimised communities – but the change in her daily lived experience of discrimination was what mattered most to her. (Picture: Christian Aid / Amanda Farrant – library photo from DDS, a Christian Aid partner working to promote dalit rights) Christian Aid Accountable Governance Peer Review, India, 2009

Community Advocacy for Infrastructure, Nigeria Community monitoring of local government infrastructure projects Scorecards Budget & expenditure tracking Lobbying, public meetings Media campaigns 12 infrastructure projects reinstated Public meeting process institutionalised

What does value look like? Construction begins again on a bridge connecting communities to local markets and major roads in Ebenebe, Anambra State, Nigeria. Although the government had allocated funds for the bridge for 2 years running, the contractor had not undertaken any work. Following community complaints to the local government, a new contractor was appointed and the bridge was completed. (Picture: Justice Development & Peace Commission)

Community Advocacy for Infrastructure, Nigeria Total CA funding: £330,000 Total government expenditure: Flood controls £800,000 20,000 Road upgrades £352,000 Bridge £320,000 45,000 3 primary schools £120,000 30,000 4 boreholes £64,000 120,000 2 health centres £56,000 60,000 £1,712,000 275,000 ROI ~1:2 ROI ~5:1 £1.20 ROI ~2:1

Women in Governance, Sierra Leone Mobilising women candidates for 2012 local and national elections 5,400 women in “Women in Governance” network Engagement with political parties & traditional authorities Use of radio & other media Working with men as well as women Total CA funding: £437,000

What does value look like? Picture: Social Enterprise & Development Foundation Ghana (Not SL!)

Women in Governance, Sierra Leone 2008 4 women councillors / 29 0 women MPs / 8 In line with national average 2012 12 women councillors / 29 1 woman MP / 8 Bucked national trend 35% women vs 11% nationally Total number of women MPs actually fell in 2012 (from 17/124 in 2008 to 15 in 2012) Just over £33,000 per woman elected Some evidence that elected women are prioritising different things than men – e.g. woman MP focusing on watsan rather than town halls

Migrant Rights, Dominican Republic Advocacy & practical support for rights of Haitian migrants to DR Research / policy development, conferences, coalition advocacy Monitoring human rights abuses Direct support for migrant groups Public mobilisation & campaigning Legal casework – national & international Total CA funding: £447,000

What does value look like?

Migrant Rights, DR Legal Casework National level 130 / 212 citizenship cases successful 6% of total budget = ~£27,000 £206 per success International – IACHR 0 successes yet – cases in progress 2% of total budget = ~£9,500 Potential to overturn core discriminatory national law in DR but 10 year process

Migrant Rights, DR Public Campaigning Little support in mainstream media Strong political resistance Post-earthquake shift in public opinion Power analysis to aid rethink Shifted approach: Online campaign Monthly demos outside electoral authority 13% of total budget = ~£58,000 Getting a better result for the same resources

Migrant Rights, DR Lobbying Activities in coalition Other CSOs / INGOs Research institutions Attendance at Inter-American processes Policy positions / framing 35% of total budget = ~£156,500 Could we have got the same result for less?

Questions for discussion What is your organisation’s value proposition? What have you learned from putting VFM into practice in your organisation? What are you doing differently as a result of applying VFM within your organisation?