Development of a social monitoring system at the local level: An experiment in the Southern Region of the Democratic Republic of Sudan

Conclusion

The first phase of the social monitoring project finished in four provinces out of the six provinces in the Southern Region. It is intended through what has been described as a ‘development monitoring system’ to establish a link between potential users and producers of data, to ensure that the data are actually used, and in turn that the clients at any level obtain the kind of data they want. Regarding the accuracy of data, two kinds of checks are made, one through comparison with data from external sources (secondary data available in various sectoral departments located in the provinces and area councils) and the other through internal consistency controls. The results of the survey are very useful for planners and policy makers as well as in the day to day administration. It is worthwhile to mention that the information collected from this project is widely used for the district development programmes. The sketch map and the information collected are being used for the demarcation of the enumeration areas for the forthcoming National Population Census. The experience of the Social Monitoring Project in the Southern Region finally resulted in draft proposals in other developing countries like Somalia and Tanzania. As mentioned, the scheme will achieve its full usefulness only after several years when changes over time can be measured with some confidence.