The Service Delivery Indicators Program (SDI) was designed to create and promote the use of objective measures of the quality of health and education services in Africa. According to the World Bank, which helped create SDI, “No set of indicators is available for measuring service delivery and quality at schools and clinics from the citizens’ perspective.”{footnote_1} By creating metrics for health and education services that are consistent within and among countries, SDI hopes to increase attention, measurability, and accountability for the success of those services, leading to long-term improvements in health and education.
SDI will assess 10 – 15 countries in Africa on each of the indicators based on a random sample of health and primary school facilities. The countries will be selected to maximize the impact of the program. The indicators are designed to measure the availability of important health and education inputs as well as the knowledge and effort of the service providers. The intention is to “provide a useful snapshot of actual performance as well as possible constraints that may undermine the delivery of quality services.”{footnote_2} The hope is that, long term, the existence and usage of the indicators will help improve health and education in the participating countries.
The program was recommended to us by the Hewlett Foundation, which also has provided funding for SDI. Good Ventures made this grant as part of our effort to co-fund projects with major foundations in order to learn how they identify, monitor and assess the impact of grants.