Workshop Proposals

Workshop Submissions for the 9th Biennial SAMEA Conference are now closed.

CONFERENCE THEME

The theme for this year’s conference is: ‘VUCA-VUKA! Catalysing change through monitoring and evaluation’. VUCA, an acronym for Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous, underscores the pressing need for responsive action amidst the high levels of uncertainties and volatilities in today’s world. Our response to this VUCA world is characterised by awakening (siyavuka) to the challenges and collectively embracing proactive action. Furthermore, we commit to fostering adaptivity, collaborative and innovation in our practice, advancing our vision of M&E as a catalyst for equitable and sustainable development in South Africa and beyond.

In our effort to “unconference” the conference, we are intentionally integrating elements that foster co-creation, peer-to-peer learning, and community-building. With an aim to enrich the conference with an indigenous African heartbeat, the conference will also be infused with the art of storytelling as critical knowledge sharing. Throughout the conference and the post-conference workshops we want to promote the following principles:

1

Co-Creation and Inclusivity:
We prioritise co-creation, ensuring that participants become active contributors to the conference experience.

Inclusivity is embedded in the fabric of our concept, with deliberate efforts to create spaces where diverse voices are not only heard and also respected.
2

Acknowledging Different Learning Styles:
We are tailoring our conference format to accommodate for participants’ varied learning styles and information processing methods.

Whether through visual presentations, interactive workshops, or storytelling sessions, we ensure that all participants can engage in ways that resonate with them.
3

Encouraging Interaction and Networking:
We place a strong emphasis on fostering interaction and networking opportunities throughout the conference.

These interactions are designed to facilitate meaningful connections and collaborations that extend beyond the event itself.
4

Challenging Ideas and Building Together:
We hope the conference will be a space where participants feel comfortable to challenge each other’s ideas and narratives in a respectful and dignified manner. Through this robust discourse and constructive dialogue, we aim to foster a culture of growth and collective learning.
5

Solutions for Africa, by Africa:
We aim to use the conference as a space to find homegrown solutions for the challenges facing Africa. By harnessing the knowledge, expertise, and diverse perspectives present within the continent, we seek to drive meaningful change that is rooted in local contexts.

WORKSHOPS

As part of the conference, SAMEA will organise capacity-building workshops that focus on theories, methodologies, tools, and new developments in the field of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E). These workshops provide an invaluable opportunity for delegates to enhance their M&E skills and deepen their practice. This year the workshops will take place after the conference on October 10th and 11th. Please note, workshops will be in person only.

We invite you to submit a workshop proposal for review and potential inclusion in the post-conference workshop programme. Workshop topics should be relevant to this year’s conference theme and sub-themes.

CONFERENCE STRANDS

The conference will focus on the following discussion areas:

Theme 1: M&E for Just Transition explores the transformative role of monitoring and evaluation products and practitioners in promoting just transition, economic and social inclusion and responding to ecosystem breakdown, climate change and biodiversity loss. Workshops under this theme can cover relevant tools and indices that can be used to bring in issues of climate change, ecosystems health, equity and justice into evaluations, or can focus on more co-creative sessions focusing on this area.
Theme 2: Made in Africa Evaluation opens the discussion to explore different examples of using indigenous knowledge systems in evaluation, what “Made in Africa” looks like in practice, and what frameworks or tools can be developed to promote a more African approach to evaluation. Workshops under this theme can include participatory sessions on theories and practice on Made in Africa Evaluation approaches or other indigenous evaluation approaches.
Theme 3: M&E evidence for continuous adaptive management, reflection and learning addresses the need for evaluators and evaluation to respond rapidly to emerging problems in an increasingly complex and unstable environment and promoting the systemic use of evidence for adaptive management. Workshops under this theme can focus on adaptive M&E approaches, how monitoring and evaluation evidence can be used for intervention management, learning and improvement, among other issues.
Theme 4: Tech-Enabled MERL aims to explore and enhance data management and the effective use of secondary data in our African context, and sharing challenges and good practice related to the responsible integration of digital tools and approaches into M&E. Workshops under this theme can encompass practical approaches to topics such as Responsible Data, AI for African Evaluation, Applications of MERL Tech, Data Governance, Open Source Software, and other related themes.
Theme 5: M&E for Investing in Impact/Measuring Impact provides an opportunity for SAMEA and the M&E profession to contribute to discussions, and develop new methods, approaches in the Impact and Social Investment sector. Workshops under this theme should focus on aligning the principles of M&E and Impact Measurement and Management, while providing practical guidance to M&E practitioners and impact investors on how to effectively measure and report on such investments.
Theme 6: Evaluation for and by youth provides a platform to highlight the different approaches for engaging young people in evaluations as participants and as collaborators. Workshops under this theme can focus on using innovative approaches when evaluating youth projects. It can also focus on integrating young evaluators in the evaluation teams and how to transfer skills and stimulate learnings.
Theme 7: Competencies of M&E practitioners as catalysts of change in the time of VUCA focuses on what are the competencies required by M&E professionals whether young emerging evaluators, middle – or advanced levels M&E professionals in responding to VUCA. Workshops under this theme can focus on a range of practical sessions on M&E basics to build M&E capacities, or on co-creating lists of competencies and standards monitoring and evaluation professionals need to strengthen their practice.

Review Process and Selection Criteria

To create a high-quality programme including basic as well as the newest ideas and results in the field, the workshop proposals will be assessed by a review panel with respect to the criteria listed below.

Clarity: Clarity of concept and learning objectives.

Relevance: Relevance of topic to current debates and issues in the evaluation field.

Target Level: Extent to which the proposed workshop is relevant to target participants and matches the specified level.

Participation: Level of participatory engagement as demonstrated through a variety of effective, active, learning strategies.

Workshop Facilitator experience: Demonstrated experience in training/workshop delivery.