dfid jo abbot - vfm and civil society

7/27/2019 Dfid Jo Abbot - VfM and Civil Society

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Slide 1

Value for Moneyand Civil Society

Civil Society Department

February 2011


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What does DFID want to see CSOs doing on VFM?..shared agenda, we want civil society organisations to be as

effective as they can be in eradicating poverty..

..same agenda for all organisations multilaterals, governments etc

Putting effectiveness at the heart of a CSOs work:

Having a clear vision

Being clear about results

Having sound, evolving partnerships

Being well governed and having strong organisational processes

Maximising value in everything an organisation does


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What does DFID want to see CSOs doing on VFM?Cont.Less about:

Isolated used of methods orapproaches eg SROI, DALYs,

CBAsAnalysis delinked from

organisational processes

Applying a VFM recipe book orstep by step guidance

VFM as an add on, discreteprocess or activity

Blanket application of formulas andratios

More about

Organisation-wide thinking

Justifying your approach in your

specific context Identifying options and prioritising

areas for maximising value

Continual commitment to learningand improving

Piloting and monitoring Showing evidence and feedback

loops

Being practical


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Myths about Value For Money Its a race to the bottomits not about whats cheapest

(eg use of volunteers)

It hinders innovation and risk taking should make risksand assumptions explicit as part of the theory of change, but

also the potential opportunities for scaling up/wider

application

It encourages easy-to-measure programming choices ifthe results chain is sound, should not drive particular sectors

or projects further down the results chain.


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What is DFIDs policy on VFM in its funding ofNGOs? NAO: optimal use of resources to get desired outcomes

Proposals need to explain in what ways funding will offer the maximum

benefit for the resources requested.

Consider and cost different options.

All funding applications are scrutinized for VFM in terms of

administrative and programme fundingthis is not new.

VFM considerations are part of funding decisions, but what is key is a

sound proposal. If a project/programme has been well thought through,then it is more likely to be scored highly in terms of value for money

Consistency - the budget, logframe and proposal need to tell a coherent

story of change


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Ways to think about VFM: Be practical. Value for money is part of the overall assessment and can not be de-

linked from other aspects of the assessment eg design, rationale

Give sufficient information to assess VFM eg unit costs, costs per participant/trainee,cost effectiveness or rate of return, other options considered.

Work through the programme with partners VFM applies to all organisationsreceiving funding.

Justify why the approach has been chosen in terms of providing the best value giventhe time and resources spent, the type of spend.

Provide clear analysis of what VFM means for you eg type of organisation or spend,position on the results chain, geog spread

Explain the nature of the project and the context as it relates to VFMwhat are thereal costs of doing business? eg harder to reach groups/areas, security concerns etc

Demonstrate the institutional systems in place to assess/monitor VFM Have strong results focus VFM flows from that.


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How can CSOs demonstrate value

Monetizing eg costs per beneficiary, unit costs and comparewith industry/local standards where available. Extrapolatesensibly.

Benchmarking Compare your costs against otherCSO/govt/private sector provider and show how costs andbenefits vary

Showing efficiencies: % costs on activities compared torunning cost, where budgets are being spent, staff based,outreach approaches etc


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Questions we ask of proposalsand of ourselves!Are there recent examples to show how CSOs ensure value

for money in their work?

Is there evidence to show that CSOs think about costeffectiveness in decision making and resource allocation?

Is funding performance based within the organisation?

Have CSOs used any comparators (either internal or

external) to highlight value for money?Are robust monitoring and evaluation systems in place?


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More questions(continued) Is there evidence to show that CSOs are continually looking

to improve value for money?

How does the organisation control administrative costs? Is there evidence that the organisation achieves economy in

purchase of inputs?

Are robust financial management, accountability and auditing

arrangements in place?


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Conclusions Joint learning processDFID doesnt have the answers.

But DFID is keen to share knowledge and lessons

Continual improvement rather than a hurdle to jump over Should reinforce poverty and results focus, and enhance

effective partnerships

Its building an organisational culture of VFM, with partners

too. Trail blazing - much innovation and leadership in civil

society


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Slide 12

Leading the UK governments fight against world poverty

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7023 0000

Fax: +44 (0) 20 7023 0016

Website: www.dfid.gov.uk

E-mail: [email protected] Enquiry Point: 0845 300 4100

If calling from abroad: +44 1355 84 3132

LONDON

1 Palace Street

LondonSW1E 5HE

EAST KILBRIDE

Abercrombie House

Eaglesham Road

East KilbrideGlasgow

G75 8EA

dfid jo abbot - vfm and civil society

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