Remote Appraisal, Supervision, Monitoring and Evaluation (RASME) program, a tool that improves project-related data gathering in remote places, has gained support in Rwanda.
It is the ninth nation overall on the continent and the first in East Africa to accomplish so.
The project is a collaboration between the KoBoToolbox Foundation, a non-governmental organization connected to the Harvard Humanitarian Program, the World Bank’s Geo-Enabling Initiative for Monitoring and Supervision, and the IT department of the African Development Bank (CHIS).
Using a smartphone, tablet, laptop, drone, or satellite, RASME enables Bank staff members, including task and sector managers, country and regional program officers, and government officials, to gather project information directly from the field.
Text, video, pictures, and even survey replies are among the different ways in which the data is collected.
The milestone was celebrated on May 17, 2022, in Kigali, in front of representatives from the government, project implementation teams, the World Bank, and a number of African Development Bank departments.
“The Government of Rwanda welcomes the new initiative and believes RASME will contribute to strengthening effectiveness as it will simplify project implementation, especially in terms of the quality and monitoring of projects,” said Gerald Mugabe, acting director for external finance for the Rwandan government.
“This tool is very useful for the Bank in two ways: in the context of COVID-19, where travels, missions, and visits to project sites are limited; and also when visiting projects located in remote geographic areas where accessibility is either impossible, difficult, or limited due to conflicts, lack of security, hazardous terrain, or logistical constraints,” said Francis Kohoue, IT coordinator for the Bank’s East Africa regional office.
The African Development Bank’s country manager for Rwanda, Aissa Sarr Touré, commended the administration for encouraging the use of the tool.
In order for the initiative to fully deliver effective project monitoring and evaluation, she urged participants to fully engage with the Bank’s implementing team.
In order to give Bank stakeholders the ability to prepare projects more effectively, monitor their progress, and assess the impact of projects on beneficiary communities, the African Development Bank is currently implementing RASME across its country and regional offices.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, Chad, the Central African Republic, and Mozambique are all currently using RASME.