adjust

The challenges posed by an unexpected event, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, underscored the importance of fostering strong connections with project stakeholders, adaptability, and proactive engagement. In this case, faced with a lockdown and the inability to conduct planned activities, the project successfully maintained its course, sustained stakeholder engagement, and capitalized on unforeseen opportunities to achieve enhanced outcomes.

The adaptation strategy to the COVID-19 pandemic was key for the project success. In this regard, a strategy aimed at adapting methods to changing, external circumstances (natural, pandemic and/or geopolitical), going beyond the risks inherent to the project’s internal design, and defining the actions and measures to be to be taken should such potential changes materialize should also continue to be considered systematically in all UNDEF projects.

 

The elderly project should be a source of learning for both UNDEF and the grantee organization LBH Apik, since both parties have not dealt exclusively with elderly before. In a short project such as this (especially with an unexpected challenge like the pandemic), the Donor and Implementing Agency should conduct more frequently periodical pause and reflection to assess direction, progress, challenges, and lessons learnt in order to be able to manage the project adaptively. Ideally this is done every quarter. Sessions for the purpose of learning need to be intentionally planned from the outset. It is unclear whether programmatic learning is being performed from the bottom to the top, and vice versa. It is useful however to cohesively provide a picture on the differences and similarities, and what worked and what did not work.