WE in M&E is a call for the whole of government to take concrete steps towards the increased use of evidence from monitoring and evaluation (M&E) to achieve results. Enhanced usability entails ensuring proper information fit: evaluation agendas are drawn up to be responsive to real-life challenges, and practical solutions inform interventions. Following the whole of government approach, enhanced usability also underscores the need to pool together all WE have and need—financial, intellectual, and human resources, as well as the exercise of political will—for the rigorous conduct of monitoring and evaluation toward improved policies and programs.

This year’s theme is an invitation to take stock of the M&E ecosystem, and for agencies, sectors, and individuals who comprise the ecosystem to understand their role as part of this space, and weave in the WE perspective in their practice. While the WE perspective draws inspiration from international norms and global trends for a more inclusive M&E, WE in M&E is an opportunity to deliberately learn from local practice, and to reflect on how far WE have gone, where WE want to go, and how WE can get there together. 

Particularly, this year’s forum aims to contribute to achieving the following objectives:

1. Strengthen the consensus for embedding and improving M&E practice towards achieving development goals;

2. Secure commitment from decision-makers to invest bigger in M&E systems, competencies, and infrastructure to better track and manage the results of key social and economic programs;

3. Provide a venue for strategies that can make M&E more inclusive and responsive, and allow the general public to know why monitoring and evaluation are indispensable in meeting social and economic development goals;

4. Strengthen the M&E community that supports one another and reinforces local and internationally accepted, and culturally appropriate norms and standards in conducting M&E.