By Amos Harris
The Governance Commission (GC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning and the Liberia Institute for Geo-Information Services (LIGIS), has hosted a high-level, one-day symposium aimed at strengthening monitoring and evaluation (M&E) practices across Liberia’s public sector.
The symposium took place on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, at the Governance Commission’s headquarters on Third Street in Sinkor, Monrovia, under the theme: “Accentuating the Prospects and Challenges of Monitoring and Evaluation Practice in Liberia.” The forum brought together representatives from various government ministries, agencies, and commissions, alongside international development partners, civil society organizations, academia, and national M&E practitioners to discuss practical measures for improving data quality, institutional coordination, and performance reporting.
Delivering the opening statement, Cllr. Stanley S. Kparkellin, Commissioner for Monitoring and Evaluation, Research, and Publication at the Governance Commission, called for urgent structural reforms to strengthen Liberia’s national data architecture. He warned that fragmented reporting structures, weak data management, and limited institutional capacity continue to directly undermine public-sector performance and national development outcomes.
Cllr. Kparkellin emphasized that monitoring and evaluation should not be treated merely as a bureaucratic reporting requirement, but rather as a strategic management tool that enables institutions to track progress, accurately assess performance, identify systemic gaps, and make critical decisions based on credible evidence. He noted that robust M&E systems are vital to promoting transparency, operational accountability, and continuous learning within the government.
The Governance Commission official identified inadequate coordination among public institutions, weak data collection and verification systems, resource constraints, and the absence of a unified national architecture as major barriers affecting the practice in Liberia. He pointed out that while many ministries, agencies, and commissions have designated M&E focal points, severe capacity gaps remain in data analysis, advanced evaluation methods, results-based management, and performance reporting.
According to Cllr. Kparkellin, many public institutions continue to rely heavily on manual processes, fragmented databases, and inconsistent reporting mechanisms. This reliance often leads to significant data discrepancies and a subsequent reduction in public confidence regarding government performance reports. He further noted that conflicting reporting requirements among different government institutions, sectors, and international development partners have contributed to a duplication of effort, inconsistent performance indicators, and reporting fatigue among implementing agencies.
Drawing lessons from continental peers such as Rwanda, Kenya, South Africa, Botswana, and Ghana, Cllr. Kparkellin argued that Liberia could vastly improve its development outcomes by establishing a holistic National Monitoring and Evaluation Framework. Such a framework, he explained, would dynamically link national planning, budgeting, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting while creating common standards and improving evidence-based policymaking across the board.
Providing an overview of the symposium, Monitoring and Evaluation Reform Program Manager Mr. McNeil Mani Wilson described M&E as a core pillar of Liberia’s national development agenda. He explained that the forum was specifically designed to identify major structural prospects and challenges affecting tracking metrics at all levels, while enhancing inter-agency coordination for the effective execution of Liberia’s National Development Plan.
Also speaking at the event, the Acting Chairman of the Governance Commission, Prof. Alaric K. Tokpa, praised the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, LIGIS, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), and other key partners for supporting the Commission’s work. He reaffirmed the Governance Commission’s commitment to working closely with national and international stakeholders to strengthen development planning, rigorous monitoring, financial accountability, and citizen-centered governance across Liberia.