Poverty Tools Testing: The Latest Chapter - Tanzania

This note discusses the testing of a Poverty Assessment Tool by FINCA, Tanzania, and argues in favor of using in-house staff for the testing process.The note presents information about the 'FINCA Client Assessment Tool' (FCAT) that surveyed clients and collected information about client demographics, outreach to the poor, business profitability and wealth creation, in order to calculate a clients' household poverty level.It argues that the employment of outside staff by FINCA had advantages as well as disadvantages:

• The advantages:
  • Fresh perspective on the project;
  • Prevention of distraction among current staff from their work on other projects in progress;
  • Maintenance of closer management over implementation.
• The disadvantages:
  • Client overexposure and "interview fatigue";
  • Outsourcing risk;
  • Lack of knowledge about the importance of probing;
  • Travel planning pains.

The report concludes that although the survey team accomplished all testing requirements and gathered useful data, using in-house staff would have eased the process.