Accountability, Learning, and Planning System (ALPS). 2006. Action Aid International. 

The Accountability, Learning, and Planning System (ALPS) approach of Action Aid International is designed to: ensure accountability to all stakeholders, in particular the poor and marginalized, develop streamlined mechanisms for innovation, learning, and feedback without unnecessary bureaucracy, and implement participatory planning processes mindful of the central role of power relations in rights work.  ALPS integrates the planning stages from appraisal, strategy development to planning and reviews. 

After a strategy or project has been implemented, annually partners and stakeholders at the grassroots embark on participatory review and reflection processes (PRRPs) to better understand what has been implemented, what the outcomes or learning have been, and how things might be done differently in the future. The PRRP is designed to ensure that Action Aid increases their accountability and transparency to the poor. Results from the PRRPs then feed into strategic or program learning and inform future changes as necessary. 

Strengths:

• Strong feedback mechanisms are in place, which enhances organizational learning.
• Grassroots and stakeholders voices are regularly solicited and contribute to programmatic and organizational strengthening.
• ALPS outlines a comprehensive and transparent accountability system for reporting on outcomes to stakeholders in a variety of settings.
• The approach focuses on both successes and failures and on how to strengthen programs.
• There is a significant focus on power analysis and strategies to address power imbalances in different planning and assessment phases, including strategy development, appraisals, research initiatives, planning, and reporting.
• ALPS attends to power imbalances stimulated by donors in community settings through assessment requirements. As such, the approach simplifies reporting and facilitates participatory processes of mutual learning and accountability. In addition, the approach suggests creative forms of reporting through visual media, storytelling, or songs instead of lengthy reports. 

Weaknesses (or not designed for):

• This is not a M&E framework, but rather a tool for organizational learning and planning.
• There are no mechanisms for assessing how or why change happens.
• Depending on the reporting format chosen, there may be no means for comparing program results or tracking outcomes over time.