Capability and practice
The team may need applied learning or coaching: practical work on its own files, so people can apply the rules and methods with confidence.
Home › Free tools › Problem Tree and Objective Tree Builder
Problem Tree and Objective Tree Builder
A problem tree is the starting point of most donor project designs and logframes. Enter the core problem, its direct and deeper causes and its effects; the tool draws the tree and converts it into objectives you can carry into a logframe.
- Builder
- 15 min
- Free
- Sources checked October 2026
Who it is for
- Project designers and proposal writers
- Government planning units
- NGOs preparing concept notes
- M&E teams reviewing project logic
What you get
- A clear visual problem tree
- An automatic objective tree (problems turned into desired results)
- Print, PDF and Word versions
- Optional AI check of the logic and gaps
How this tool works
- Built on
- EU Project Cycle Management Guidelines (logical framework approach)
- Scoring
- No score: the tool arranges what you enter in the structure reviewers expect. With a free account, an optional file review applies published rules to your own document.
- Limitations
- Results depend on the information you enter and are not verified by Risalat. This tool does not replace MAPS, PEFA, World Bank or other formal assessment methodologies, or an independent review.
- Your data
- What you type stays in your browser unless you save it to a free account. We receive your name, email and summary only when you open your results.
- Sources checked
- October 2026 (checked every month)
Need a verified result? Ask for an independent assessment by Risalat.
Programmes that build these skills
Upcoming programmes whose content matches the areas this tool measures. Your results show which fit your weakest areas.
ProgrammeProject Designing, Proposal Writing and Fundraising Training in ParisParis · 22 Feb 2027ProgrammeResults-Based Monitoring and Evaluation for Donor-Funded Projects in NairobiNairobi · 11 Jan 2027ProgrammeResults-Based Monitoring & Evaluation Training and CoachingYerevan · 1 Feb 2027
Nothing here for your exact need? Ask for an in-house programme built around your gaps, or browse all programmes.
Questions
What makes a good core problem?
One clear negative situation that matters to the people affected, not the absence of a solution. 'Clinics run out of medicines' is better than 'no new warehouse'.
How does the objective tree work?
Each problem is rewritten as the positive situation you want to reach. Causes become means, the core problem becomes the project purpose and effects become wider goals.
What comes next?
Use the objective tree in the Logframe Builder to set indicators, sources of verification and assumptions.
Based on
Sources checked: October 2026. We check the official sources every month.
A guidance tool, not an official form. Always use the exact template and rules in your financing agreement, terms of reference or call for proposals.