Third-Party Monitoring of Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund

We served as third-party monitors for activities funded by the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) sites, inspecting over 1,500 infrastructure and community development projects. As the supervisory agent, we inspected the Afghanistan Rural Access Project, the Education Quality Improvement Program (EQUIP), the National Solidarity Program, and the On-Farm Water Management Project. Our team produced more than 10,000 inspection reports for work across the country’s 34 provinces. Reports helped to monitor investments, including trend analyses, general findings, and recommendations for performance improvement for ARTF project implementation and management.

On-the-ground inspection

For each project site, we developed a monitoring and evaluation plan for the projects’ construction and social aspects, including data collection, verification methods, and reporting requirements. Assessing both needs and impact was grounded in community-level engagement. We recruited, trained, and maintained a network of field data collectors with engineering and social sciences backgrounds to visit communities across the country, including in areas with fragile contexts. Field monitors were trained in our mobile-based monitoring methods.

Remote tracking

Blumont developed and used an innovative data capture and management technology that, coupled with best-practice quality assurance, provided year-round access to project sites and data. Teams managed data through a geospatial database and kept stakeholders informed through regular reporting on construction quality and project impact, with a focus on social, safety, and gender issues.

Building local capacity

To build local capacity, we developed training for community members on daily monitoring methods. Local outreach included surveys and dialogues with leaders, elders, and teachers to assess needs within communities and receive feedback on implementation and project impact of ARTF works in their areas.