RISE – PV MSC Midline Evaluation

Trainees

Nakivale Community Members

Confiance Ishimwe - Financial Inclusion Officer

Diana Kakwezi - Financial Inclusion Officer

Felix Nzikobanyanka - Financial Inclusion Supervisor

Nelly Kamikazi - Financial Inclusion Officer

Simon Kibwila Kimuke - Financial Inclusion Officer

Programme Staff

Alice Norah Lajwa - OI Africa Women Empowerment Champion

Aqrchet Diana Salume - OBUL, Project Supervisor

Mandy Burrows - OI UK Senior Programme Manager

Mazza Dolib - OBUL - Intern

Naomi Musiande - Financial Inclusion Officer

Noah Ssemijja - OI Refugee Programme Coordinator

Community Groups

6 community groups from different areas at Nakivale Refugee settlement took part in the field work, with between 8 and 15 participants per group undertaking the participatory video project. Over 150 community members attended the screening. A full list of participants is available at Annex One.

Dramatisation of refugees arriving at Nakivale, October 12 2022

Group Name Location Nationalities Languages

Wenzetu Group Nyarugugu C, Nakivale

Abamwe Tentungure

Burundian, Congolese, Rwandese Kirundi, Swahili, Kinyarwanda

Kaswina Host Community Ugandans Runyankore and Luganda

Family Saving Sangano, Nakivale Congolese and Burundian Kiswahili, French, Kirundi

Kazi ni Kazi Kigali, Nakivale

Umoja ni nguvu wakulima New Congo, Nakivale

Rwandese, Congolese Kinyarwanda, Kiswahili, Kinyabwisha

Ugandans, Congolese, Burundian and Rwandese

Kiswahili, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Runyankole

Pamoja tunaweza New Congo, Nakivale

Ugandans, Congolese, Burundian and Rwandese

Kiswahili, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Runyankole

Groups taking part in the PV MSC video production element of the fieldwork

The InsightShare facilitators met with the Opportunity International (OI) UK Senior Project Manager in Kampala on October 6th 2022 and travelled to the Nim Motel and training venue in Katete, Mbarara, some 268 kms from Kampala and 42 kms from Nakivale Refugee Settlement, where the fieldwork was to take place.

The first four days focused on training the group in basic participatory video techniques and the Most Significant Change method, to equip them to carry out the evaluation in the field. There were 10 trainees, some of whom were from the Nakivale Refugee Settlement and others who were staff or interns from Opportunity Bank (OBUL) in Kampala. Three days of fieldwork followed, in which the local evaluation team split into two groups and led the activities on each day, supported by the InsightShare facilitators and the Opportunity International Programme Manager.

Overview of Activities

Days 1-4

Saturday 8 - Tuesday 11 October

Day 5

Wednesday 12 October

Day 6 Thursday 13 October

Day 7

Friday 14 October

Day 8

Saturday 15 October

Day 9

Sunday 16 October

Day 10 Monday October 17

Day 11 Tuesday October 18

Day 12 Wednesday October 19

Day 13 Thursday October 19

Day 14 Friday October 20

Day 15 Saturday October 21

Training: Learning about PV, practicing PV exercises, learning about MSC and practicing it, preparation and planning for the field. Also reviewing baseline and introduction to editing and subtitling.

Fieldwork: Wenzetu Group and Abamwe Tentungure Group

Fieldwork: Family Saving and Kazi ni Kazi group

Fieldwork: Umoja ni Nguvu Wakulima and Pamoja Tunaweza groups

Reflection on fieldwork, managing the data collected and planning editing, Learning how to edit. Translation of testimonies and scribe stories. Editing day one fieldwork.

Half day - continue with editing and scribe type-up.

Finishing editing and scribe notes write-up, checking translations, naming photo files, planning screening, preparation for screening

Participatory analysis - tagging stories, domains of change, identifying enablers, blockers and changes, final preparations for screening.

Community screening and group discussion. Presentation of certificates to trainees. Return to Kampala.

Debriefing between OI and InsightShare. Preparation for Kampala screening.

Screening to OBUL in Kampala, plus presentation.

Insightshare facilitators depart.

After the fieldwork, the team was trained in basic editing using iMovie and, once the videos were edited, further training in participatory analysis enabled the team to analyse the data emerging from the fieldwork before a final community screening in Nakivale, in which additional data was collected from discussion groups, on October 19th. A final presentation in Kampala led by the Senior Programme Manager, the Refugee Programme Coordinator and the Senior InsightShare facilitator to OBUL concluded the midline evaluation process.

Training days: pre-fieldwork

The training activities took place in a large training room and in the gardens of the Nim Motel on the outskirts of Mbarare. The aims of the training days were to build the evaluation team through a series of fun activities, which combined developing video skills with participatory action learning (PAL) games and exercises to build trust, develop group identity and reinforce collaboration as our key motivator for learning. The intention of the training and how this would be put into practice in the field was discussed throughout the training days. We explored our hopes, concerns and expectations of the training period and we grounded ourselves through creating a group agreement to guide how we would conduct ourselves in the training and in the field Various technical exercises introduced the trainees to the Filmic Pro App on the iPads, using microphones, monitoring sound, framing and shot types and storyboarding. The ‘tripod game’ race built confidence in assembling and taking down the production equipment. Learning was captured via Visualisation in Participatory Programmes (VIPP) cards Different shapes and colours of cards enabled us to create a ‘learning garden’ on the walls.

The games and exercises designed to develop technical skills and increase confidence put into practice the principle of 'each one teach one', in which participants pass on what they have learned to one another For example, the 'Name Game' introduces how to film and record sound on the iPads by enabling each person in the group to experience filming, monitoring sound and introducing themselves to camera. The clips are then played back to the participants who can then identify good points about their recordings and aspects that need to be improved.

"Each one teach one" - participants instructing each other on using the iPad to film and record sound during the 'Name Game'.

After developing basic Participatory Video skills (PV) the focus shifted to the Most Significant Change evaluation method, how to facilitate people to tell and share their stories and how to develop individual stories as a team. The facilitation techniques were learned experientially, with the evaluation team working through the activities that they themselves would facilitate in the community groups at the Nakivale Refugee Settlement during the fieldwork days.

The method was introduced by first inviting small groups to discuss how they would define the words ‘most’, ‘significant’ and ‘change’. This laid the foundations for creating the MSC question to be used in a story circle, mirroring the process to be used in the field The story circle enables participants to share deep, honest stories from their own lives. The MSC question decided by the group was ‘What was the most significant change in your life since you became involved with Opportunity Bank’.

Story Circle - how it works

Two scribes are appointed to each take a note of every participants’ story Once the question has been introduced to the circle, each person is given the opportunity to share their story of significant change and the person to the teller’s immediate left is asked to be the ‘ears’ for that story After going round the circle for the first time, the ‘ears’ are then invited to retell the story and the scribes can also fill in any details missed Each member of the circle is then invited to state which for them is the story that is most powerful in representing significant change and to state the reason for their choice These are noted on a flipchart as are key words to help create criteria for selection Once everyone has identified their preferred story, the group agrees by voting which story to develop into the group video

Once the story to develop as a video was selected, it was unpacked through working together on the ‘River of Life’ activity, in which the life of the storyteller imagines his or her change journey as a river, with rocks or rapids representing barriers and other images such as an island, or a flower garden representing opportunities or enablers leading to the significant change This is an opportunity to involve the whole group in helping the chosen storyteller to develop his or her story by asking questions, prompting and encouraging the storyteller to provide more detail and drawing on the River, which is represented on a large piece of flip chart paper around which everyone gathers. Once the River is completed, the storyteller has practiced their testimony a number of times and can then go to a quiet location with one or two trusted members of the team to record their story direct to camera

Meanwhile the rest of the group used the River of Life to decide which key scenes they would include in the video to illustrate key moments. From this they created a storyboard to illustrate each of the six scenes which could be dramatisations of key moments, or cutaways to show location or context.

Once the storyteller has recorded his or her testimony, they return to the group and collectively film each scene that has been storyboarded.

River of Life at Abamwe Twetungure Group, October 12 2022

After completing the filming, the footage was reviewed by the group and the points at which the illustrative scenes would be inserted into the testimonies were agreed so that the story could be edited and reviewed the following day, the final training day before the fieldwork.

On the final day's training simple editing and subtitling principles were introduced to ensure that editing could commence as soon as the team returned from the field The community screening is an important element of PV MSC, as it helps involve other groups in triangulation and verification of data, making information accessible and encouraging downward accountability. It also provides an opportunity for the groups - trainees and participants - to showcase their work and be proud of their achievements Trainees also capture additional data that feeds into the evaluation

The final hours of the training was spent planning the fieldwork in terms of daily timetable, assigning roles and practicing for the fieldwork days.

Throughout the training period, the concept of free, prior and informed consent had been highlighted as of key importance to the method. It was necessary also for the consent process to be translated into the local languages to ensure that every participant could fully understand what they were consenting to.

Free, Prior and Informed Consent

Obtaining consent throughout the PV protects all parties – the participants (team making the video), contributors (people from the local community or decisionmakers who are interviewed or filmed), facilitators, funders and organisers. Everyone involved should understand where, when and why the footage can be used. The three stages of consent are:

1. Consent to participate: Discuss all aspects of filming with each contributor before any filming begins (purpose, background of project, participatory nature, involvement as contributors, plans for dissemination of the footage and video)

2. Consent after filming, including during editing: Reconfirm after filming that each contributor is still willing to take part and give their consent. They may wish to review the footage before giving their consent.

3. Consent to share: Once a rough cut has been produced of a finished video, contributors can view it and decide whether they still wish to be included.

Video recordings of contributors giving consent is a useful alternative to written forms, especially if literacy is a barrier to full understanding of a written consent statement The participant is asked to explain the purpose of the film being created and to state their willingness to take part as well as to confirm with which audiences they want to share the video.

Note: When obtaining consent in monitoring and evaluation contexts, especially in PV MSC, the participants who share their stories in the story circles can opt to remain anonymous, unless they give specific consent for their stories and any other photographs or videos of them, to be used for any other purposes.

An additional opportunity for reflection

During the training days the team created two videos, edited in camera, presenting their own reflections on the baseline workshop and PV process that had taken place in March 2020 These shared by InsightShare with CDAC Network (Communicating with disasteraffected communities) ahead of the annual conference in Genever in October 2022.The trainees talked about the baseline having 'planted a seed in their communities' from which OBUL had been able to provide financial literacy training and access to banking services, including loans, to help refugees establish and grow businesses in Nakivale The baseline PV project enabled OBUL to learn about the group that they are targeting (refugees) and create products that could more appropriately meet their needs.

By involving the communities in the baseline we were able to design products that would meet the needs of the host community and the refugee communities, both of whom were facing some similar challenges.

In response to the baseline videos, OBUL set up agents in the host community and hired financial literacy trainers from the host community.

Some of the refugees and some members of the host communities who are entrepreneurs required additional support, so business skills training was introduced as a new element of the programme From the feedback in the videos, it was found that financial literacy training was excluding mostly women because of their busy schedules and other commitments, so OBUL was able to customise the training plan so that everyone could benefit and to create community ownership of the training plan

OBUL has been able to provide loans to refugees to help small businesses to grow as well as teaching how to plan and save and use financial services.

OBUL has opened a bank in the Nakivale settlement to provide easier access to financial services and training

Preparing for baseline reflection video

October 8 2022

"Over the last three years we've been implementing these exciting ideas from the community through the baseline videos that we captured. However we are yet to know whether our programme has really created the impact that we planned to create for the refugee communities. As such we are involving the groups that we are working with in this next round of participatory videos to establish how the programme has impacted them and to make any changes to ensure that everyone benefits."

Noah Ssempijja - OI Refugee Programme Coordinator

Fieldwork

During the fieldwork, 81 stories of change were collected through the story circles. Each participant was invited to tell their story in response to the MSC research question: What has been the most significant change in your life since you joined the Opportunity Bank RISE programme?

As each participant shared their story, their immediate neighbour became 'ears', assigned to listening carefully to the story and to re-tell it in the second story circle iteration. The facilitation team also included two scribes who would note down each of the stories. When the 'ears' shared their memory of each story, the scribes would share their notes so that through the re-telling, each participant was satisfied that their stories were told accurately and in the way in which they wanted to tell them

As facilitators guided participants through the process, each were asked to consider which story for them represented the most significant change and to provide a reason. These were captured on a flip chart. It was important to be clear that facilitators were not seeking the 'best', but the story that resonated most with the group in terms of the barriers the individual faced, how they overcame them, what they had achieved and what did they envisage for the future.

Video playlist

Photo Album