Assessment On The Planning Practice Of Local Contractors For Federal Public Road Construction Projects In Ethiopia

Abstract

As seen from previous experience, most of ourcountry’s construction projects have not been successful, particularly to meet their schedule and cost targets due to the industry’s weak practice of planning. With respect to this problem, the study was conducted to explore and to capture the existing project planning practice of local contractors for federal public road construction projects implemented in Ethiopia, inorder to provide some understandings over the maturity level of the practice. Furthermore, the study has tried to identify the major factors influencing the quality of their project planning practice. The study has developed its research framework through combining conceptual and contextual frameworks. This is because; conceptual developments originated from the global good practices of planning required for critical adaptation to the contexts of Ethiopia. Accordingly, the research has constructed five planning areas (general; schedule/time; resource; financial; and risk, safety, quality, communication and procurement) as practice categories containing thirty activities of planning in order toexplore and rank the maturityby relative importance index generated from the collected data. On the other hand, thirty factors have identified and listed in six categories (time related; management related;information related; skill, knowledge and attitude related; planning technique, tools and process related; and software related) in order to rank their influence on the practice by principal component analysis loading of the collected data. Furthermore, SPSS and MS Excel ware used as data analysis software. As the result of the research witnessed; even if there is adequate awareness on the benefits, the maturity of project planning practices of local contractors in Ethiopian federal public road construction projects is subsisted at low level. Relatively, the practices of planning risk, safety, quality, communication and procurement category are found to be the least matured practices; on the other hand, relatively the highest maturity level is found for their time planning practice. Furthermore, connected to the factors, management related factors are found as the most dominant factor that affects qualityand maturity of their projects planning process. With respect to this, low level construction management capacity of the construction industry, shortage of qualified or skilled planner, and low levelof project management knowledge and experience/practice of practitioners are the mainchallenges as well as the most influential factors affecting the planning practice of federal public road construction projects in Ethiopia. Finally, the study has drawn recommendations, such as trainings and management capacity building program, for contractors’ action as improvement intervention.