Communication is a vital part of M&E that links the findings with the users. It is important that the true interpretation and meaning of M&E findings are communicated in response to the specific purpose of why the M&E was initiated in the first place.

Communication is a multifaceted process, however we can depict it in a simple linear form to show the mechanics of transmission from an information source to a receiver as shown in figure 1.

The message is sent from the information source to the receiver via a communication channel. There is much potential for meaning to be dismissed, lost or distorted. For a message to be transmitted, it must first be encoded.

For example, the information source may be an idea that is encoded by writing it down; the receiver decodes the message afterwards, by reading it. Some information is lost during the process due to interference and the receiver will create some new information during the interpretation of the message.