Handheld Software Tools for Program Assessment

Project No:  2003-0027 Country:  Zambia Organization:  US Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) Partners:  ICT Sector:  Health, Nutrition and Population; Information and Communication Technologies Awarded:  $50,000 Reports:   Story:   Images:      Project Description  Objective: To enable local social and economic development workers to use handheld computers and software tools for rapid, inexpensive and simple acquisition of development program assessment data.  Rationale: Large social and economic programs, with large budgets, are able to bear the heavy costs of sharing assessment information with high-end technology. Smaller, lower-cost, community-based programs, on the other hand, cannot. They often forego the data-driven assessment process entirely, relying on less rigorous, qualitative measures of effectiveness. With increasing competition for limited funding, however, donors are demanding more sophisticated, data-driven assessments, and this leaves smaller, lower-cost programs—even potentially very effective ones—out in the cold.  Innovation / Expected Results: The project will promote the development of new technology, which will allow the benefits of high-quality assessment to development programs previously unable to perform such assessment. These benefits will become available to new beneficiary groups (low cost programs, and the poor that they serve) and new geographic areas, such as those remote locations currently beyond the reach of desktop technology.  Contact Information  Project Manager: Joel Selanikio; MD joel.selanikio@hhs.gov  Related Links:  DataDyne DataDyne featured on UN Foundation TV