The chosen indicators should have the following characteristics:

a) They should cover the different aspects of implementation and operation of the programme. The indicators should provide information on the efficiency (chapter 4) and effectiveness (chapter 5) of the programme.

b) They should be simple, and the number of indicators should be limited. The idea is not to have indicators which describes the total universe of the programme, but rather a few indicators which produce the information necessary for decision-making.

c) They should be cost-effective. Just as it is not always necessary to have a separate indicator for each aspect of the programme, it is also not necessary to have full coverage of any particular factor. For example, a sample at a few health centers can be sufficient instead of collecting data continuously at every health center.

d) They should be adapted to the manpower and financial resources of the country and, in particular, of the programme. Monitoring should not be based on complex and expensive data collection techniques that would be difficult to apply in the country on a continuous basis.