Project Background

eTools is a product to strengthen efficiency and results in UNICEF country office core work processes: work planning, partnership management and implementation monitoring in development and humanitarian contexts. The primary users of eTools are country office staff and their partners. Regional offices and HQ are secondary users as eTools will provide supplemental features to these users to provide data related to their oversight and technical support responsibilities.

The eTools Project was initiated to respond to the needs of country offices as articulated through consultations and demonstrated by proliferation of office specific development of systems. In absence of a corporate solution, offices had created over 20 custom-built point solutions in order to manage core work processes that were not supported by any of UNICEF’s corporate solutions.

Moreover, in a typical year, UNICEF responds to over 250 emergencies or “humanitarian situations” in approximately 80 countries. In these situations, strong performance monitoring is required to ensure a high-quality response, effective management of limited resources, and the ability to measure results for children. This complex humanitarian performance monitoring is carried out largely using manual/paper-based solutions – with advanced spreadsheets/electronic forms in some countries.

UNICEF has decided to develop a single uniform solution, eTools, for all offices to meet these and related needs. eTools will be modular in design so that offices can pick and choose as needed as per their specific environment and requirements, i.e., based on country income, office size, humanitarian response/action or emergencies. eTools provides the benefit of integrating work processes for better results based management.

eTools is an open source Django/Python/Polymer product with complementary mobile applications that is custom built by UNICEF. The eTools Project is sponsored by DED, Field Results who is supported by a Project Board in carrying out project definition and oversight of project performance. The eTools Project is jointly managed by Field Results Group (FRG) and Information and Communication Technology Division (ICTD).

eTools aims to deliver an ecosystem that eases work planning, partnership management and implementation monitoring for UNICEF and stakeholders. This project aims to leverage the best features and attributes of existing or conceptual solution or systems developed by country offices; augment the capabilities of VISION (both SAP and inSight) and eliminate the need for custom-built and/or existing country office-specific systems.