Evaluation (after the activity) Your evaluation will let you know at the end of an activity how well the outcomes have been achieved by telling you: • what worked well, for whom, in what circumstances, and why, • what did not work so well, for whom, in what circumstances, and why, • what was learned that could be useful for future work. Information gained from the evaluation enables your NHRI to report on what you have achieved and how you can improve future activities. It also gives your NHRI evidence to be accountable to and showcase your impact to communities, donors, partners, and other key stakeholders. MEAL timeframes There is no rule about when you should review your progress towards, or the achievement of your outcomes. MEAL timeframes included in your MEAL Plan will necessarily be guided by the activity you are monitoring or evaluating. In deciding when you will activate a MEAL process, consider: • The size and length of the activity: short activities may only involve setting a baseline at the beginning and evaluating against outcomes at the end. Longer activities may also include monitoring progress at several key points. • Your accountabilities: reporting on progress and receive feedback from your communities, donors, partners and other key stakeholders. • External factors: other activities your NHRI is involved with that a MEAL could contribute data to, such as national or international reporting. You may also wish to do a ‘learning-check’ from an activity to guide the MEAL planning for another piece of work. If you are reviewing your NHRI’s strategic plan, you may decide to monitor progress half-way through your annual planning cycle and then evaluate the outcomes at the end of the annual planning period to contribute to your annual reports. If you are reviewing a 3-year long national inquiry, you may decide to monitor progress after years 1 and 2 and evaluate the outcomes at the end of the third year. If you are reviewing your performance in a donor-funded activity your timeframe may be stipulated by donor requirements. While you will include timeframes in your MEAL Plan, these should be flexible allowing for the many unexpected factors that invariably happen during the lifetime of the work you are monitoring and evaluating. 71