Ensure that your M&E plan includes elements of both qualitative and quantitative data. M&E plans without qualitative data will provide numbers and figures without a sense of context or an adequate explanation of ―why‖ or ―why not.‖ Conversely, M&E plans without quantitative data included provide information about the context and community thoughts and perceptions, but the information is very difficult to generalize outside of the surveyed communities or perhaps outside of the surveyed households. Many objective statements have both qualitative and quantitative components. For example, you can measure household use of improved hygiene practices quantitatively to provide the percentage of household practices with the defined behaviors and qualitatively to understand why households do and do not practice different behaviors.
Be sure that indicators in your M&E plan that require quantitative data (such as percentages, averages or sums) will be collected with quantitative tools and that qualitative data will be collected with qualitative tools. Relying on qualitative methods, such as focus groups, to provide quantitative data is a common mistake.
