Defining indicators

An indicator is a quantitative or qualitative measure of how close we are to achieving a set objective. Indicators need to apply to different levels of results/effects (short-term outputs, intermediate outcomes, and long-term impacts).

There are several ways of capturing outcomes and impacts although there tends to be a preference, especially among policy-makers, for the use of (generally quantitative) indicators, which often attain higher visibility in policy debates than do qualitative impact statements. Qualitative indicators can be highly illustrative of the outputs and impacts of activities explaining also the factors and conditions that made impacts happen, but are more difficult to aggregate and to subject to quantitative analyses. Quantitative indications can only show a snapshot of reality in numbers but cannot provide explanations on how these numbers were achieved or not, nor can they show how important these numbers are as they lack the personal testimonies of those involved.

Since the intervention logic is highly likely to be subject to some evolution during the lifetime of the policy intervention due for instance to change of assumptions over time, it is important that indicators are also allowed to be revisited.

Building on the above, some suggestions can be made on more 'generic' type of indicators to allow for diversity in P2Ps. This is attempted in two tables including 'generic' indicators for evaluating a P2P as a whole (partnership level) and 'generic' indicators for evaluating P2P-supported projects (project level).