Monitoring and evaluating our work

A Drop in the Ocean (DiH) has held our first ever Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) of all our projects and activities in the four different locations we operate in Greece. The M&E took place from November 2019 until February 2020.

The M&E methodology had as its main goal to measure the impact of DiH’s activities on the wellbeing of its beneficiaries. Both beneficiaries and the service providers (DiH’s coordinators, team leaders and teachers) were included in the study, qualitative and quantitative data were collected and satisfaction surveys were used.

The main conclusion of the evaluation is:

‘DiH operations in Greece are, overall, successfully providing valuable support to the people living in camps across the nation. One of the key successful factors appears to be the focus on promoting communities and individuals’ resilience and focusing on promoting integration and social interaction, through the establishment of programs which bring people together to learn, interact and have fun, regardless of their religion, country of origin and refugee status’.

Other conclusions and recommendations include:

DiH programs at all locations provide physical and emotional safety to the beneficiaries, who seem to be using the activities to relief emotional stress and discomfort and as a tool to improve their emotional state.
Results suggest that beneficiaries like learning a new language in the DiH multicultural and mixed gender context, which promotes learning through the integration of the western culture into the beneficiaries’ culture and promote inclusion and tolerance.
Results also suggest that, especially in the unaccompanied minors case, the challenges of working in an unsafe environment and with children, who suffer from trauma and PTSD, impose the need to focus on assuring the provision of a safe space where children are free to be children and are free to express their feelings, learn and develop.
In regards to personal skills, DiH is recommended to continue recruiting Coordinators and Team Leaders who have strong interpersonal skills and are able to create a respectful and friendly relationship with the beneficiaries, with respect to boundaries and cultural differences, and with the ability to work within a structure but have the flexibility of approach within that structure.
For programs in Moria camp and in Skaramagas, DiH could develop activities, which allow children to learn English as both groups expressed it as a top priority. Teaching of English can be integrated in the context of contributing to cultural understanding, engagement and interaction, and overall wellbeing.