Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning | A Guide for NHRIs in the Asia Pacific Module 1: Understanding MEAL Section 1.3. How to build a MEAL culture in your NHRI While NHRIs leaders are responsible for driving a MEAL culture, everyone in the organisation is responsible for putting MEAL into practice. Doing a stocktake of current MEAL practices in your NHRI provides a good base on which to develop your MEAL culture and capacity as an organisation and decide what changes are needed.4 The first step is to look at existing monitoring and evaluation practices that your NHRI can build on, how they are being reported and what you can learn from them. Consider what is and is not working well and how it can be improved. CHECKLIST: DOING A MEAL STOCKTAKE Monitoring and Evaluation To what extent do we already have an organisational culture of, and commitment to, MEAL throughout our NHRI? Is MEAL written into job descriptions and is it a key part of induction and ongoing professional development? Do we have supportive structures and processes to undertake MEAL in our NHRI? Do we have a MEAL Framework and process in place? If so, • is it used across all of the NHRI’s activities or in certain programmes only? • what is working well, what is not working so well and why? • what MEAL-related gaps may we need to address? • does the information and data gathered inform our decision-making and strategic planning? • does the information and data guide how we allocate our resources? Is the MEAL framework gender mainstreamed (ref checklist in Section 1.6)? Do we have staff with specific responsibility, skills and capacity for MEAL? Do all staff understand MEAL and have the confidence to apply it to their work and contribute data to organisational MEAL? What MEAL challenges do we face? (ref list in Section 1.4)? Accountability Are we clear on, and in agreement on, who we are accountable to? Is equity addressed in all MEAL activities to understand the different effects of our activities/ interventions, especially on women and other marginalised groups? Do we effectively report on the impact of our work (ref list in Section 1.3)? 14