Goal
The main purpose of the ASARECA Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting, and Learning (PMERL) Community of Practice (CoP) is to enhance relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability of agricultural research for development through coordinated mutual accountability and collective actions at national and regional level within ASARECA Member States. This platform was established in 2012 to coordinate the following:
Rationale of PMERL CoP
Due to consistent push by development partners, governments, and stakeholders for evidence of impacts and value for money on investments made, PMERL has become a very critical platform for the success of Agricultural Research for Development (AR4D) in Eastern and Central Africa. It is recognizable that better monitoring, coupled with strong evaluation using relevant methodologies and tools, comprehensive reporting, and a culture of continuous learning are prerequisites for evidence-based decision-making and innovation. The need for reliable and consistent data gathering, cleaning, entering, storing and retrieving requires systematic approach that is replicable in all the Member States. This platform provides a forum for members to share experiences, expertise, successes, and lessons learned.
Mission
Our mission is to create a collaborative space where professionals, researchers, practitioners, and stakeholders in agricultural research for development share, learn, and innovate in PMERL practices, thus fostering continuous improvement, knowledge exchange, and effective decision-making in the agricultural space.
Membership
Currently, this CoP has over 50 members drawn from the following categories of institutions:
Membership Fees and Funding
Currently membership to this platform is free. However, associated platform activities are currently financed by the European Union through the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme CAADP ex-pillar IV (CAADP-XP4) project as part of the grant awarded to ASARECA, AFAAS, CCARDESA, FARA and CORAF.
Further information on membership is available from
ASARECA Secretariat
Plot 5, Mpigi Road
P.O. Box 765, Entebbe, Uganda.