Matt Haikin explains the findings of some new research, conducted with George Flatters, on what the roles of INGOs should be in an increasingly digital world. lthough Nairobi is the most well-known magnet for interesting ‘tech for good’ start-ups, the whole Horn, East and Central Africa(HECA) region is full of interesting ICT4D activities. In 2016, we interviewed and held workshops with …
FAQ: How can I measure household income? (Part 2)
In the second of a two-part blog on measuring household income, Oxfam GB’s Impact Evaluation Advisers explain their approaches to measuring household wealth. ncreasing household income is the final outcome indicator for many development projects. Given this, as Impact Evaluation Advisers, it is unsurprising that we are often asked how to measure it for monitoring or impact evaluation assessments. Last …
Geek out with us @ MERL Tech London
MERL Tech – an event exploring the use of technology for monitoring, evaluation research and learning – is coming to London for the first time in February 20-21st 2017. Hosted at the St Brides Foundation by Oxfam and Comic Relief, we are calling for practitioners to submit session ideas and to sign up to attend and become part of our …
Setting up ICTs in emergencies
Hilman Agung, our dedicated ICT Humanitarian Support Personnel (HSP), shares some insights into this new role and his experiences with this new way of working. ne of the biggest challenges to getting started with information communications technology (ICT) is having the capacity and support on the ground, especially in humanitarian settings where time is of the essence and small mistakes …
What can tech do for tax justice?
How can we use technology to support the work towards better fiscal systems and the citizens they affect? Sue Moore takes us through a recent hackathon in Kenya, run with this goal in mind, and explores its potential. espite Kenya’s notable economic growth, inequality levels have been rising. In a country with a tax gap of 40%, there is huge …
Out in the open: Oxfam’s impact evaluation survey data now available for download
Through the effectiveness reviews, Oxfam collects a large amount of individual and household survey data. In this blog, we explain why we are making these data available, and where to find them. e talked about this in previous blogs and presentations, and I am happy to finally be able to announce that the individual and household survey data we collected …
Cleaning up complexity: Making information useful for all
In 2015 Oxfam was awarded a Humanitarian Innovation Fund (HIF) grant to support field staff to capture (currently undocumented) informal feedback which is received face-to-face by creatively using ICTs to enable responsive and accountable uses of information. Below Grace Higdon, Project assistance within Oxfam’s ICT in Programme team, takes us through some of the project’s outcomes. n June 2016, Oxfam …
I’ve got the power! Calculating statistical power for matching models by simulation
Calculating statistical power – or working out how many people to interview before a survey – can be a challenge, especially if we want to use matching models to estimate projects’ impacts. In this blog post, we discuss how computer simulations might make power calculations easier and explain how we’ve tried this out in the evaluation team at Oxfam. How …
Unleash the real geeks
Simone Lombardini introduces our new series ‘real geek’, Research, Evaluation and Adaptive Learning (Generating Evidence and an Enthusiasm for Knowledge), blogs for anyone who sees research, measurement and evaluation as essential tools for learning, adaptation and ultimately improved impact. his is the first of a series of blogs where Oxfam’s technical advisers, researchers and programme colleagues will share questions, learning, …
Mobile surveys: The past, the present, the future
Since 2013 mobile surveys have become increasingly important to our survey processes at Oxfam, and across the sector. Emily Tomkys shares some of the key learning that has contributed to the latest Mobile Survey Toolkit, now available online to all development practitioners. t has been a long journey from when most of Oxfam’s data collection used paper and pen in …