NACI Resources Studies, etc. A Monitoring and Evaluation Framework to Benchmark 2005

This study was commissioned by the Science, Engineering and Technology for Women (SET4W) Reference Group1, a sub-committee of the National Advisory Council on Innovation (NACI) in the Ministry of Science and Technology. The research brief for this project was formulated as follows in the Terms of Reference document: The South African Reference Group on Women in Science and Technology (SET4W) invites submissions for the prepara ion of a mixed methods research study to design a suitable monitoring and evaluation framework to enable SET4W and NACI to regularly evaluate the performance of women in and the contribution of the respective genders to the input and output of the NSI, [ ] and to use this as a basis to advise the Minis er of Science and Technology (p.3). The establishment of SET4W was originally proposed in the National Research and
Development (R&D) Strategy (2002:36) as a group of local and international “stakeholders and representatives of organisations with interest in the progress of women in science, to monitor and advise the Department of Science and Technology on relevant issues.” The key objectives of SET4W include:
• To assist NACI to promote a research agenda, including influencing funding that will improve the quality of life of women
• To assist NACI to promote innovation that will allow women to make a greater
contribution to wealth generation in South Africa
• To provide advice on developing mechanisms that will increase the participation and contribution of women in science and technology
• To highlight role models that promote women’s entry and advancement in science and technology, and
• To play a monitoring role in tracking institutional impact. 

Part I of this report provides a detailed background to this study, describes the scope and focus of the research, and presents a model for understanding the monitoring and evaluation framework. SECTION A begins by outlining the brief of the research and locating the study within national and global contexts. It goes on to describe the project activities and outputs. The section concludes with an outline of the structure of the report. SECTION B describes a model for understanding
monitoring and evaluation.