According to guidance issued by the Office of the Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance for preparing the FY 2009 PPR, missions were required to provide performance information against targets for indicators, as well as a narrative description of the program status.
ADS 203.3.2.1 states that one of the principal steps in performance management is communicating results achieved or not achieved, to advance organizational learning and demonstrate the Agency’s contribution to achieving the overall U.S. Government foreign assistance goal.
The performance information reported in the annual PPR is not only one of the ways USAID communicates results, but it also helps meet statutory requirements and management needs in compliance with the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993.
In addition, because of the escalation of interest related to performance and performance management by the administration, Congress and public groups the performance information helps to:
- Define best practices and lessons learned from field activities;
- Inform current and out?year budget decisions;
- Respond to congressional and public inquiries;
- Construct required special reports;
- Prepare speeches and testimonies for State and USAID principals;
- Aggregate foreign assistance performance for State and USAID principals.
For that reason, it is important that missions comply with ADS 203.3.5.1, which states that data should be sufficiently precise to present a fair picture of performance and enable management decision-making at the appropriate levels.
General Recommendations
- Adjust future performance plans and report to correct inaccuracies in any reported results in the Fiscal Year Performance Plan and Report.
Source: AUDIT REPORT NO. 1-514-11-002-P JANUARY 26, 2011
The recommendations are derived from audit reports of the Office of the Inspector General. The source refers to the audit report, which is available on this site as part of the Audit Database Project: an educational tool for compliance with USAID regulations. Please see the disclaimer of this site before using recommendations.
- Data Collection and Reporting Did Not Always Yield Useful Information - ADS 203.
- Program Targets Were Not Clearly Defined - ADS 203
- Data Reported for a Key Indicator Were Not Consistent With the Indicator Definition - ADS 203
- Some Reported Results Were Not Reliable - ADS 203
- Impact Indicators Were Not Measured - ADS 203.3.2 - ADS 203.3.4.5
- Data Quality Assessment Recommendations Were Not Fully Implemented - ADS 203.3.5.1
- The Reliability of Performance Data Is Unknown - ADS 202.3.6 - USAID’s Performance Management Toolkit
- Reporting on Key Indicators Needs to Be Improved - ADS 203.3.5.1
- Performance Targets Were Not Disaggregated by Gender - ADS 200.5
- Performance Indicators and Targets Are Inappropriate Measures of Program Progress - (ADS) 203.3.5.1 - ADS 203.3.4.5
- Late Submission of Performance Management Plan - ADS 203.3 - 203.3.3.1 - ADS 203.5.1
- Some Main Indicators Were Not Included in Monitoring Plans - ADS 203.3.2 - ADS 203.3.8.3
- Outdated Results - ADS 203.3.5.1
- Missing Baselines, Targets, and Cumulative Results - ADS 203.3.4.5
- Performance Measurements Did Not Reflect Project Impact - (ADS) 203.3.4
- Did Not Conduct Data Quality Assessments for Key Data Reported to USAID Headquarters - ADS 203.3.5.2
- Performance Management Plan Was Not Current, Not Realistic, Not Aligned With Implemented Projects, and Not Used - ADS 200.6 - ADS 203.3.3
- Program Evaluation by Mission Was Not Shared With Contractor - ADS 203.3.6.7
- Performance Results Were Not Measured, Reported, or Supported - (ADS) 203.3.5.1
- Contractor Data Did Not Accurately Reflected Outreach Efforts - (ADS) Chapter 203 - section 203.3.5.2 - ADS 203.3.5.1