By Staff Reporter
A TECHNICAL working group established by the SADC Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) has finalised a monitoring and evaluation frame- work aimed at combating child marriage in the region.
This initiative, in collaboration with var- ious partners, seeks to enhance oversight and accountability in this critical issue.
The group recently convened for a week- long workshop in Windhoek, where experts from Southern and Eastern Africa refined the monitoring and evaluation framework and began developing a digital dashboard to track progress across member states.
The workshop brought together 28 special- ists, including monitoring and evaluation pro- fessionals from Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia,
Kenya, and Namibia.
It led to two significant achievements: the
finalisation of the monitoring and evaluation framework and the initial development of a digital dashboard.
The framework incorporates measurable indicators to assess the impact of the SADC Model Law on Eradicating Child Marriage.
Meanwhile, the digital dashboard is designed to consolidate data from various sources, providing a user-friendly interface for decision-makers.
Mr Bevis Kapaso, a monitoring and eval- uation specialist at Plan International and lead of the technical group, emphasised the importance of this framework.
“Without a mechanism to track progress, we could not measure impact,” he said.
The digital dashboard will enable policy- makers to access vital statistics in real time, creating a dynamic tool for advocacy and decision-making.
This initiative received strong backing from key organisations, including Plan Interna- tional, Girls Not Brides, HIVOS, UNICEF, and the SADC PF. These stakeholders validated the technical outputs and pledged financial and technical support for the development of the dashboard.
SADC PF secretary general Ms Boemo Sek- goma praised the innovation, describing it as a “gold standard” for future initiatives.
“This is the level of oversight and account- ability that strengthens democracies and ena- bles policy to truly serve the people,” she said.
Ms Sekgoma encouraged the formation
of teams to ensure the dashboard remains adaptive and effective.
The technical team plans to reconvene in May to finalise and pilot the dashboard, with an official launch expected shortly thereafter.
Several partners have already committed funds to support the initiative, emphasising the collaborative effort required to make this tool a reality.
Members of the technical working group expressed pride in their achievements and optimism for the future.
Mr Brave Katemba, monitoring and evalua- tion lead at HIVOS Zambia, remarked; “This is a game changer. The dashboard will empower policymakers to make data-driven decisions.”
Moses Magadza is the media and commu- nications manager at SADC PF
