Write a logframe a donor will accept.
The two documents every donor asks for are a theory of change and a logframe. This course takes you from a blank page to a one-page theory of change with the assumptions on every arrow — and a logframe with indicators, baselines, targets and means of verification you can defend.
Narration by Amara Okafor · Watch the 1-minute overview below · Members watch in the dashboard
The two documents every donor asks for — built from scratch, step by step.
This is a practical, narrated online course that teaches you to build a theory of change — an if–then argument with the assumptions written on every arrow — and a logframe, the table a donor uses to hold a programme to account. You work through a real livelihoods programme end to end, learn the SMART and CREAM tests for indicators, avoid the ten mistakes that get a logframe sent back, and see how to use AI on this work without inventing a single number. It is built for M&E officers, programme managers and grant writers, and assumes no prior experience.
The 1-minute overview. The full course plays in your dashboard.
Where reports fall down is the foundations.
Not the analysis — the thinking and the numbers underneath it.
A theory of change that is just a diagram
Boxes and arrows with empty space between them — no assumptions, so the donor has to guess why one step leads to the next.
Outputs dressed up as outcomes
“200 farmers trained” written as an outcome. Donors read for this first — it is the clearest sign a logframe is not yet thought through.
Indicators with no means of verification
A number promised with no named source. No named instrument, no indicator — and the measurement plan quietly collapses.
A baseline with no source
“Baseline: 40%” with no date and no survey behind it. The first number an auditor will ask about.
- Write an if–then theory of change with the assumptions on every arrow
- Turn that theory into a logframe a donor will accept
- Choose SMART indicators and set honest baselines and targets
- Name the means of verification for every indicator
- Spot the ten mistakes that get a logframe sent back
- Use AI on this work without inventing a single number
- M&E and evaluation officers
- Programme and project managers
- Grant writers and proposal teams
- Consultants who write logframes for clients
12 modules, one calm step at a time.
Welcome & how to use this course
What you will build, and how to follow along with one real programme in mind.
Foundations
Why a theory of change exists, and why it is an argument, not a diagram.
The if–then chain
Activities, outputs, outcomes and impact — and the assumptions on every arrow.
Theory of change vs logic model vs logframe
One logic, three packages — and which document your donor actually wants.
The logframe grid
Four rows, five columns: statement, indicator, baseline, target, verification.
Indicators & SMART
What an indicator is, the SMART and CREAM tests, and disaggregation.
Baselines & targets
Where the numbers come from, how to set targets from evidence, and the honesty rule.
Means of verification
Naming the exact source, instrument and frequency — the column everyone skips.
A worked example, end to end
A livelihoods programme built from the brief to the finished logframe.
Ten common mistakes
Each mistake that gets a logframe sent back — and the fix for every one.
AI, governance & disclosure
Where AI helps, where it fails, and the rule that keeps you safe.
Retrieval practice & next steps
Six questions to make the method stick, and how to apply it this week.
You leave with a logframe you can hand over.
Four levels, five columns, and an assumption on every arrow — with a source for every number.
IMPACT Household income rises and is resilient assumes: markets buy the surplus OUTCOME Farmers adopt improved practices assumes: land rights allow change OUTPUT 200 farmers trained and equipped assumes: attendance = understanding ACTIVITY Deliver 5-day agronomy training assumes: farmers can attend COLUMNS statement · indicator · baseline · target · means of verification
The course ships the theory-of-change one-pager, the logframe grid with a completed worked example, and the LLM prompts to draft safely. Every number has a source.
The materials you keep.
Every lesson ends in a file. These are yours to download and reuse — included with the course and with membership.
Sign in to download — included with the course or membership.
Buy this course, or join and get them all.
One-time · yours to keep
- 143 narrated slides · 50 min
- The templates and the worked example
- Lifetime access in your dashboard
Cancel anytime
- This course and every future course
- The full ebook and template library
- The full skills library — 40 installable skills
Amara Okafor
Amara has written logframes, indicator sets and donor reports across dozens of evaluations. She built this course so that the documents every donor asks for take an hour — not a week.
Evaluator & M&E trainer. Every idea is shown on one real, worked programme you can copy.
The honest answers.
Who is this course for?
Anyone who has to produce a theory of change or a logframe — M&E officers, programme managers, grant writers and consultants. No prior experience is assumed.
How long does it take?
About 50 minutes of narrated teaching. You can pause, rewind, and work at your own pace, and the slides are available to read on their own.
What do I get?
The full video, the slides, the theory-of-change template, the logframe grid with a worked example, and a quiz. Everything is unlocked with a membership.
Is it included in membership?
Yes. Member and Pro memberships unlock this course and the whole library. You can also buy the course on its own if you prefer a one-time purchase.
Does it cover FCDO and EU logframes?
It teaches the universal logframe structure that FCDO, the EU and most bilateral donors use, and explains which document each type of donor prefers.
Can I use AI to help?
Yes — and the course shows you exactly how, with a governance rule that separates authority and evidence from reasoning and inference so you never invent a number or a source.
Make your next logframe defensible.
Apply it to your next proposal this week — build the theory of change, then the logframe, and sign it.