Given Hapunda

14 and best practices. Specifically, this chapter discusses the importance of reflecting on data and document lessons learnt in projects, programmes or policies in order to improve decision-making in the second round of implementation and data collection. The author also describes step by step the processes of documenting lessons learnt and best practices. Part five contains the last two chapters of this handbook. This part is about applying M&E for action and impact-based management. Chapter twelve by Mooya and Hapunda discusses the need for M&E data to be translated for action. The authors specifically bring out the gap between M&E and knowledge translation for advocacy and policy. The authors also describe a step by step process of developing an advocacy strategy plan and policy brief from M&E data. Chapter thirteen by Tandeo discusses governance and M&E. The author argues the role of M&E in promoting good governance tenants such as accountability, transparency and public administration practices. The last Chapter of this is about developing an M&E system that can help not only track progress and assess impact but enable organisations learn and improve decision-making and implementation. Although this chapter by Hapunda has been placed at the end, in practice M&E systems are developed at the inception of a project before implementation of M&E activities. This chapter provides a step by step process of developing a system. An example of a system has been added in the Appendix to guide students develop one. Conclusion Historically, M&E has been deeply-rooted with concepts, principles of practice, trainings and practitioners coming from the developed countries, especially the USA. M&E has slowly been developing through international development grants, though most of the systems of M&E are still not country or organization-led. This handbook aims to bridge the gap that exists between local and foreign-rooted M&E concepts, principles and practices with the goal of giving students, trainers and practitioners a guide to use. As much as possible, this handbook has attempted to explain, describe concepts and steps of applying each components of M&E using participatory methods. The hallmark of this handbook is an example of an M&E system that has been developed as an example to guide students, trainers and practitioners. This handbook hopes to contribute to the development of M&E in Africa, yet, this handbook is not a holy grail of the concepts and practice of M&E, but rather a contribution to the discipline that has been dominated by literature developed in the developed countries but lacks the cultural and political understanding of the developing countries’ context.