MONEE Project

Last updated April 21, 2019

UNICEF launched the MONEE Project (MONitoring Eastern Europe, officially called “Public Policies and Social Conditions: Monitoring the Transition in Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States") in 1992 to secure evidence-based feedback on the social impact of market reforms, and to advise countries undergoing rapid political, economic and social change on financial policy. Eight Regional Monitoring Reports (RMRs) were produced by the Innocenti Research Centre between 1993 and 2001, targeting decision-makers, their advisers, academics, professionals and the general audience.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), originally known as the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, was created by the United Nations General Assembly on 11 December 1946, to provide emergency food and healthcare to children and mothers in countries that had been devastated by World War II. The Polish physician Ludwik Rajchman is widely regarded as the founder of UNICEF and served as its first chairman from 1946 to 1950, when he had to flee the United States in the wake of McCarthyism. Rajchman is to this day the only person that served as UNICEF's Chairman for longer than 2 years. On Rajchman's suggestion, the American Maurice Pate was appointed its first executive director, serving from 1947 until his death in 1965. In 1950, UNICEF's mandate was extended to address the long-term needs of children and women in developing countries everywhere. In 1953 it became a permanent part of the United Nations System, and the words "international" and "emergency" were dropped from the organization's name, though it retained the original acronym, "UNICEF".

Reports produced

Each Report provides a summary review of the social impact of the economic, political and demographic changes since 1989 and an in-depth analysis of some key thematic issues: family support policies; nutrition, mortality and health; and poverty. RMR 4 offers a framework for assessing and supporting children at risk and those left without parental care, RMR 5 focuses on education, RMR 6 on women, RMR 7 on youth. RMR 8 looks at the turbulent first ten years of the transition. The tradition, facilities, networks, and expectations created by the project have been used since 2002 to produce Innocenti’s new annual ‘Social Monitor’ series, which follows up how the benefits of economic recovery are being shared in the region.

Nutrition is the science that interprets the interaction of nutrients and other substances in food in relation to maintenance, growth, reproduction, health and disease of an organism. It includes food intake, absorption, assimilation, biosynthesis, catabolism, and excretion.

Death is the permanent cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include aging, predation, malnutrition, disease, suicide, homicide, starvation, dehydration, and accidents or major trauma resulting in terminal injury. In most cases, bodies of living organisms begin to decompose shortly after death.

Health, as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." This definition has been subject to controversy, as it may have limited value for implementation. Health may be defined as the ability to adapt and manage physical, mental and social challenges throughout life.

Budget

The Project had an annual budget of US$0.7 million (including also staff posts) covering 27 CEE/CIS countries. The Reports were written by a core staff of 3-5 people at Innocenti, using input and data from a network of focal points in each central statistical office in the region and from other policy consultants; altogether about 40-50 people.

Results

The Project had many results and a variety of outputs (including a stand-alone database, additional research papers, technical support for conferences, website summaries of focus group discussions with young people etc.) The key results were:

Use by and involvement of top level decision-makers (e.g. the President of Russia making a radio speech, the Duma asking for copies for each parliamentarian, the President of Romania at a conference)
Exceptional media coverage, citations by academic papers, books, long shelf-life, demand for reprint (RMR 4 had the greatest ever media coverage of any UNICEF publications in Germany)
Impact on the World Bank and UN sister agencies (e.g. MONEE staff invited to give presentations in Washington, wide-scale use of MONEE data and publications by Bank economists, demonstrated influence on Bank initiatives)
Use by UNICEF as advocacy tool in and outside the region: for raising awareness on the social impact of economic policies and on emerging threats for children, such as HIV, or for assessing policies and strategies that effectively reduce risks associated with economic shocks, social upheavals and poor family and child support structures and prevent child neglect and institutionalisation.

Child neglect is a form of child abuse, and is a deficit in meeting a child's basic needs, including the failure to provide adequate health care, supervision, clothing, nutrition, housing as well as their physical, emotional, social, educational and safety needs. Society generally believes there are necessary behaviors a caregiver must provide in order for a child to develop physically, socially, and emotionally. Causes of neglect may result from several parenting problems including mental disorders, substance abuse, domestic violence, unemployment, unplanned pregnancy, and poverty.

Institutionalisation refers to the process of embedding some conception within an organization, social system, or society as a whole. The term may also be used to refer to committing a particular individual or group to an institution, such as a mental or welfare institution. The term may also be used in a political sense to apply to the creation or organisation of governmental institutions or particular bodies responsible for overseeing or implementing policy, for example in welfare or development.

Factors contributing to success

Unfailing support from, and involvement of, UNICEF senior management (e.g. the Executive Director, the Regional Director and country Representatives launching MONEE Reports)
Long project life helping to accumulate capacities, knowledge, networks and fame
Sufficient funding and stability in core positions
Professionals with substantive research capacity and ability to create intellectual interest directing the project
Collaboration with a well-established and well-maintained network including a great number of local and a smaller number of international professionals
Stakeholders and a focal point for distribution within the World Bank
Focus on statistical evidence and on producing original, new analysis; at times even pioneering work
Multi-country coverage, multi-language versions
Rigorous analyses presented in accessible style
Strong advocacy involving project staff, media experts and senior UNICEF officials

Constraints

Difficulties included establishing direct contact with statistical agencies in a very few countries; these were overcome with UNICEF field support. While many offices were using project outcomes and networks for advocacy and for programme planning in optimal ways, some others were showing less interest, which hindered project outreach. In several countries no UNICEF offices existed in the field (e.g. Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, and Bulgaria); in these countries National Committees were involved in advocacy, often with excellent results. In some countries (e.g. Russia, Ukraine, Belarus) UNICEF offices were established only after 1997, when the Regional Office for CEE/CIS/Baltics was created.

The MONEE project has demonstrated that by creating a regional monitoring, analytical and advocacy facility, UNICEF can repeatedly and substantially increase awareness on how economic and social policies impact children, women and families and influence how others, including national governments, civil society organizations or the World Bank use their resources and develop their programmes and interventions in a great number of countries.

External links

MONEE project at unicef-icdc.org

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