Improving the systematic evaluation of local economic development results in South African local government

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Evidence-based policy making and results-based management aim to improve theperformance of organisations, policies and programmes by enabling the accuratemeasurement of progress and results required for management and policydecisions. Within the notion of the developmental state, 'Local EconomicDevelopment' (LED) uses the development planning and implementation capacitiesof local government to accrue economic benefit to the locality with the aim ofaddressing development problems such as unemployment, poverty and marketfailure at the local level. While promoting the economic welfare of citizens is acritical objective of local government, the absence of specific indicators for LEDmeasurement hampers their ability to successfully determine whether their effortsare achieving the expected results.The aim of this dissertation is to promote the systematic and committed evaluationof the results of LED interventions in South African local governments. As such, itprovides guidelines for an outcomes-based monitoring and evaluation (M&E)system for LED in South Africa and presents a framework of generic outcome andoutput indicators for alternative LED interventions within the context of public sectormonitoring and evaluation.The dissertation commences with an overview of the history of evaluation research,the conceptualisation of 'Monitoring' and 'Evaluation', and a categorisation of thealternative approaches to evaluation. It further explores best practices in instillingM&E in organisations, policies or programmes through guidelines for thedevelopment of M&E systems; designing and conducting evaluation studies;presenting findings; and developing indicators. This later provides a basis forexploring challenges in the evaluation of LED and proposing guidelines for anoutcomes-based LED system. The policy framework of public sector M&E in SouthAfrican government is explored before recommendations are made on the basis ofgood practice guidelines from the selected international systems and the WorldBank. The concept 'local economic development' is contextualised and itsmanifestation in South African policies and practice explored to demarcate the rolesof various role players, but local government in particular, in promoting LED. A review of LED-related literature produced a comprehensive list of potential LEDinterventions. These interventions were categorised into business development,locality improvement, community development, or improved governanceinterventions. Specific programmes and projects from practice were summarisedwithin each intervention. For each of the identified LED interventions, genericoutcome statements and objectives are formulated, followed by concrete contextualoutput and outcome indicators. The developed indicators are partly derived fromexisting indicators used to measure development results, but primarily developedfrom the implied end result captured in the objectives and outcome statements ofeach intervention. The LED indicator framework was reviewed by selected M&Eand LED experts for final refinement and comments.The systematic evaluation of LED results based on well-designed evaluationstudies that incorporate the strengths of the various approaches to M&E can enablethe identification of the most promising, best return-on-investment LEDinterventions, as determined by the real, accurate results of these interventions.This can improve strategic policy and management decisions so as to maximise thelimited available resources for LED and ensure the greatest positive economic andsocial development impact.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University