Monitoring and Evaluation System : The Case of Chile 1990-2014

Abstract

From its creation in the 1990s, the
 Chilean monitoring and evaluation (M and E) system has
 represented a substantial part of the effort to improve the
 use of Chile's public resources within a broader
 context of multiple initiatives designed to modernize and
 improve public management in many areas. This close
 relationship with the budget has determined the primary
 characteristics of the M and E system, in both its design
 and operations. The M and E system's institutional
 coverage includes all the organizations in the executive
 branch of the central government and those included in the
 budget law for the public sector. The objective of this
 document is to give a broad view of the M and E systems in
 Chile, distinguishing the three stages and providing lessons
 for other countries that are developing their own systems.
 The first section focuses on the first period and its two
 stages: 1990-2000 and 2000-2010. These stages concentrate
 mainly on the role played by the budget office. The second
 period covers 2010-13, in which light is shed on both the
 new system's actors and the emphasis adopted by the
 authorities in charge, but at the same time the authorities
 largely continue and strengthen the existing tools from the
 M and E system of the previous period. The third section of
 the paper summarizes success factors and obstacles to
 success in the two periods. Section four states general
 conclusions regarding the main system's challenges and
 section five includes lessons for other countries.