Given Hapunda

233 project strategy review meetings, monthly partner meetings, quarterly partner meetings, mid-term review meetings to mention etc. These events are not only important for critical reflection but also for assessing performance against targeted outputs in the project. However, it is important to train all relevant stakeholders, on critical reflection, documenting lessons, writing minutes if these events are to produce the desired outputs of maximising impact. How can we promote critical reflection in Projects/Organisations? One of the problems faced by project managers, monitoring and evaluation specialists and programmers is that the pace and demands of workplaces allow little space for reflection (Gray, 2007). Critical reflection will not come by accident. It is important that a positive environment and culture is created within the project or organisation that promotes critical reflection among staff and other stakeholders. The promotion of critical reflection represents an important strategy, not only to ensure involvements of stakeholders but also learning to help maximise impact. In order to ensure that satisfactory and desired results are achieved within the projects we serve, each organisation should put in place an environment aimed at encouraging staff and other relevant stakeholders to engage in critical reflection. This means creating a conducive environment that encourages project, monitoring and evaluation staff to engage in critical reflection or raise questions about experiences, challenges, processes and also ideas. Adopting critical reflection will reduce the costs associated with implementing activities that do not lead to impact; will also help to identify potential dangers early and ensure timely action. Overall, critical reflection helps to improve productivity of project staff and stakeholders feel that their voices and contributions are valued. To ensure a working environment that ensures the maximisation of impact, critical reflection must be promoted as a core activity. This involves creating systems and working practices which encourage critical reflection. Thus; 1. An approach which is gaining widespread use in ensuring that project staff and stakeholders engage in critical reflection, including expectation of involvement in critical reflection in the job description, memorandum of understanding (external stakeholders) and terms of reference. This helps to ensure that everybody associated with the project, from project staff right through to primary beneficiaries are actively involved in critical reflection. By emphasising critical reflection within the job description or memorandum of understanding helps to underscore the importance of learning within the project. This also helps to reduce complacency among project staff and stakeholders. 2. Project staff and stakeholders should also be encouraged to engage in critical reflection by consistently asking them for their opinion or views regarding challenges, processes or how certain