FACTORS AFFECTING SUCCESS OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN

ETHIOPIA

A FINAL THESIS PERTENTED TO THE ACADEMIC DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL OF

SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIRMENT
FOR DEGREE OF DOCTOR IN CIVIL ENGINEERING.

BY

MAHAMED FARHAN HASSEN

UD72376SCI81534

ATLANTIC INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Honolulu, HI USA
June 2021

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Table of Contents:
List of table………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3

List of figures……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………… 5

1.1 Contextual Data…...……………………….………………………………………5

1.2 Background of study………………………………………………………………6

CHAPTER 2: DEFINITION OF THE INVESTIGATION …………………….…….8

2.1 Statement of Issue……………………….……….………………………….……..….8

2.2 Description of Issue………..……………………………………………………….…8

CHAPTER 3: DYNAMICS OF ANTICIPATED SOLUTION…………………..….16

3.1 Goal and Objective of investigation ……………..….……….………………….…16

3.2 Methodology…………………………………………………………………………17
CHAPTER 4: OVERALL OUTCOMES………………………………….………..19

4.1 Strategy and technique ……………………………………………………………..19

4.2 Results …… ………………………………………………………………………20

CHAPTER 5: ANALYSIS …………………………………………………………24

5.1: Interception results……………………………………………………………….24

5.2: questions about alternatives …………………………………………………….34

CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION:……………………………………………….39

6.1: General Discussions …………………………………………………………..39

6.2: Recommendations …………………………………………………………41

REFERENCE ……………………………….………………………………………43

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: schedule variance of project in Ethiopia…………………………..…………..24

Table 2: cost variance of project in Ethiopia…………………………………………...25

Table 3: reason for project delays in Ethiopia…………………………………………..27

Table 4: Factors resulting in Cost overrun in Ethiopia…………………………………29

Table 5: Factors resulting in Quality Problems on project deliverables of Ethiopia….30

Table 6: client questionnaire analysis………………………………………………….34

Table 7: contractor questionnaire analysis……………………………………………..36

Table 8: contractor questionnaire analysis ……………………………………………38

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: pie chart graph of Schedule Variance of projects in Ethiopia…………….……25

Figure 2: pie chart graph of Cost Variance of projects in Ethiopia…………………….…26

Figure 3: pie chart graph of client questionnaire ………………………………………36

Figure 4: pie chart graph of client questionnaire (based on Likert)…………………….38

Fig 5: Project Success frame work …………………………………………….……….43

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 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1: Contextual Data.

The driving force to study the selected area came from personal observation of the considerable
delays in completion of construction projects undertaken in Ethiopia and the reworks and
performance problems on the constructed projects. Being the second most population country and
third most wide area of Africa continent , Ethiopia demands a highly growing infrastructural
development. Among the developments desired at all corners of the region is construction of
standard projects. Yet, as communities in region, we have been witnessing the significant delays
in completion of different projects (i,e water projects and road construction projects) administered
by Ethiopia construction sector administration bureaus. We have also heard the complaints of the
society and several institutions for the inconveniences resulted by the delays of the projects for
completion and the quality problems of the deliverables through various media. Moreover, number
of different construction projects (i.e buildings, water sector and roads) are constructed without
the ensuring quality and guarantee of project, due to that after a while (beyond life span) it may
need maintenance and rehabilitation works resulting in spending of additional resources and time
besides creating inconvenience on the users. Consequently, these projects will also be subjected to
cost overrun , schedule over run and reworks are among other the factors resulting in cost overrun.
Considering the failure of the construction projects, to be succeed in the three success dimensions
of projects and the definition of project success given by other scholars, it can be implied that most
of the projects executed by the authority have not been successful so far. ‘‘Time, cost and quality
have their proven importance as a prime measure for project success and Project requirements are
commonly assumed to be time, quality and cost of a project. Success and failure of any project
will be measured by these three requirements.’’ (Siraw, 2011). “Timely and with budget
completion of a construction project is frequently seen as a major criterion of project success by
clients, contractors, consultants and related stakeholders” (Muhammad, 2014).

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 1.2: Background of Study

Generally, the success of construction projects may depend on by controlling the time frame of
project completion, planned budget of project and quality of project. If one of the factors is missed
out it may affect the success of project. From the early days of project management, the direct
project objective of time, cost and quality has been accepted as the primary determinant of the
project success or failure ( (Jack, 2009),. Thus, project implementation and management focus on
three basic parameters: quality, cost and time. A successfully managed project is one that is
completed at the specified level of quality on or before the deadline and within the planned budge.
However, a large construction projects have been known for their cost overrun and late completion
time. A considerable number of international literature opine that the viability to complete projects
on time within budget continues to be a chronic problem worldwide and a far worsening case
(Ahmed, 2002),

Yet, as a trend of construction project cost overrun becomes severe several adverse consequences
such as project failure, reduction of profit margin, loss of belief of citizen in government funded
projects, would certainly taking part.

Our country is not an exception. According to (Feyisa, 2015) even though projects are tools
through which development policies and programs are translated into practice, many public-sector
development projects implemented usually take more time; require additional budget and
customers complained about quality of project outputs. “most construction projects in this country
(Ethiopia) suffer time and cost overrun”, ( (fetene, 2008). Studies have even revealed that our
status is worse; “From the view point of cost, completion time and quality of the projects, the
construction Industry of Ethiopia is not at required level compared to the rest of the world”
(Bereket, 2015).

Many factors might be responsible for cost overruns and late completion times and quality
problems. Cost overruns are mostly caused by ‘Underestimation of costs to make the projects more
viable, addition of scope during later stages of project planning and even during construction,
changed conditions, etc.’. One of the most important contributing factors to the magnitude of cost

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overrun in large construction projects are project delays. Furthermore, the length of project
development phase from planning to construction seems to be a major factor in the extent of cost
overrun. (Flyvbjerg B., 2003)

On the other hand, studies have revealed that schedule slippages can be caused by inaccurate time
estimation, financial status of the contractor, slow site clearance, inflation, progress payments
delay by owner, inaccurate cost estimation, and delay in commencement (Siraw, 2011) .Thus, the
studies have indicated that the factors affecting the success of projects might vary in different
situations.

This study is planned to identify the factors affecting the success of construction projects in the
context of Ethiopia. The study of this paper will focus on the previously mentioned three
dimensions of project success.

The federal bureaus of urban development and construction is responsible for any construction
works carrying out in the country. Although there are other bureaus and enterprises that carryout
construction activities. But generally, the Ethiopian administration government has been
responsible for undertaking and administering construction projects since it is established. The
Ethiopia government has done remarkable progress and accomplishment in different construction
projects sectors (special water sector and road sector) in past decade.

Yet, the Ethiopian Government has been challenged to deliver its projects efficiently and
confirming to the expected level of standard. Planned schedules and budgets are frequently missed
and technical specifications of the deliverables fail to meet the standards. As scholars argue, in
order to improve projects’ performance, the factors for project success are essentially important to
be identified. The primary objective of this study is to identify the major factors resulting in cost
overrun, schedule slippage and quality problems in the construction projects of Ethiopia, so that it
will be possible to recommend on the ways to mitigate the occurrence of inefficiency of projects
in the authority and the technical specification problems of the deliverables.

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 CHAPTER 2:

DEFINITION OF THE INVESTIGATION:

2.1: Statement of the Issue:

According to the studies of several researchers, there will be many variables having an impact
upon specification problems and construction time and cost overruns. Considering the failures of
Ethiopia country construction projects to complete projects within the planned schedule, budget
and to the acceptable level of quality, this paper aimed at exploring the significant factors resulting
in these failures so that it will be possible to overcome them revealing an insight towards improving
the project management practice of the region by developing a framework.

2.2 Description of Issue:

This study is limited to assessing cause of project delays due to the cost, quality and time
dimensions of construction projects in Ethiopia. Moreover, the study has been undertaken by
considering construction projects executed or administered by Ethiopia in the last decade (2010-
2020) to demonstrate cause of project delays. Identifying factors affecting success of construction
projects will help in dealing with the issues since the inception stage of upcoming construction
projects and to control them for projects under implementation. Accordingly, the findings from
this research and the developed success framework will serve as an input to Ethiopia
administration and construction related bureaus to manage its projects successfully. On top of
that, providing an insight towards progress in infrastructural development particularly construction
works such as building, roads and water projects in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian country which is home
of more than 100 million population in country and having third largest land in the continent is
believing to have a considerable impact on the economic and social sectors of the continent as
physical infrastructure has influences in facilitating and enhancing.

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 2.2.1: Factors contributing to Cost Over Runs

Cost Overrun is the expression which is used to represent the variance between the original
sanctioned cost and the final cost incurred, would then provide no indication of managerial
performance. Anything done to a project, including time overrun would be reflected in the cost. If
a project is not managed well, its cost will go up; conversely, if a project is managed well, its cost
should come down. Therefore, cost can be used as an indicator for project management
performance (Westland, 2006). Different studies have revealed that there are various factors
responsible for cost overrun of Construction projects. (Kaming, 1997) who studied 31 construction
projects in Indonesia, found that from a contractor’s point of view, “cost overruns were mainly
caused by inaccuracy of material take-off, increase in material costs and cost increase due to
environmental restrictions”.

(lunda, 2011) ranked the three top causes of cost overruns in Vietnam as “material cost increase
due to inflation, inaccurate quantity takes - off, and labor cost increase due to environment
restriction”. (Kaliba, 2009) concluded that “cost escalation of construction projects in Zambia are
caused by factors such as inclement weather, scope changes, environment protection and
mitigation costs, schedule delay, strikes, technical challenges and. (Sambasivan, 2007). listed the
following as factors that cause cost overrun on construction projects in Malaysia; “effects of
weather, number of projects going on at the same time, social and cultural impacts, project
location, lack of productivity standards in Malaysia, level of competitors, supplier manipulation,
economic stability, inadequate production of raw materials by the country, absence of construction
cost data” .

In another study on construction projects in Nigeria, conducted by (Okpala, 1998) was found that
“architects, consultants and clients agreed that shortage of materials, finance and payment of
completed works and poor contract management were the most important causes of cost overruns”.

(Mansfield, 1994) studied the performance of transportation infrastructure projects in Nigeria and
concluded that “material price fluctuations, inaccurate estimates, project delays and additional
work contributed most to cost overruns”. During a review of public sector construction projects in
Nigeria, (Agaba, 2009) found that the three main reasons for cost overruns are “fluctuations in

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material, labor and plant costs, construction delays and inadequate pre-planning. (Kaming, 1997)
and (Mansfield, 1994) also identified “design change, inadequate planning, unpredictable weather
condition, and fluctuation in construction materials as factors influencing cost overruns” .

Another critical cause for time cost overrun were identified: incomplete design at the time of
tender; additional work at owner's request; changes in owner brief; lack of cost
planning/monitoring during pre and- post contract stages; site/poor soil conditions; adjustment of
prime cost and provisional sums; re-measurement of provisional works; logistics due to site
location. All the cited researches have helped to trace several causes. On the other hand,
‘Understanding and Monitoring the Cost-Determining Factors of Infrastructure Projects, A User’s
guide- online’ has provided the below elaborated factors resulting in cost overrun.

Factors which change costs overtime

Once implementation begins, a project’s costs rarely remain static. As further information
becomes available the costs may be further defined. Yet, even when a cost has become firmly
fixed, there are numerous factors that can lead to the cost increasing. Delays are a major factor.
Whatever the reason, delays almost invariably increase budget costs. Many events may have
contributed to the delay – some which could have been foreseen and others which could not.
(Understanding and Monitoring the Cost-Determining Factors of Infrastructure Projects, A User’s
guide- online)

Design Changes

A change in a project’s design can arise for several reasons. It may be that the project sponsor
wants additional elements to be included in the project or changes to existing ones. Usually, these
design changes require additional time inputs from architects and engineers as well as the
additional time and cost inputs from the contractor and for additional materials.

(source: design and supervision works enterprise).

Inflation

As noted earlier in this section inflation can act to increase the original estimates of construction
costs. Inflation may have been considered in the original estimates, but if the rate of inflation
increases above the predicted level during the construction period, then the original cost estimate

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will be exceeded. Obviously, any other factor that delays a project will expose the project to the
risk of further inflationary cost increases. Inflation may not be the only cause of price rises.
Political or technological factors may affect one or more element of costs.

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

Shortages of Material and Plant

During periods where the level of development activity is unusually high in a particular region,
there may be shortage of some construction materials, construction plant (machines and equipment
used during construction) and service plant (equipment used in the operation of the infrastructure
project). If this was not anticipated in the original cost estimate, delays may occur and/or the prices
of these elements increase.

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

Exchange Rates

The exchange rate is particularly relevant if contracting services or other elements of the project
are being purchased from foreign countries. If exchange rates change beyond the level predicted
by the project sponsor (and the companies providing the services) then the cost of the project can
increase. It can of course operate in the opposite way where the project sponsor takes advantage
of a strengthening of his own currency.

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

Inappropriate Contractors

Contractors are selected based on price, experience in undertaking types of project and their track
record in producing high quality work within budget and on time. Problems may arise where there
is a high level of development activity being undertaken in a region and the better contractors are
not available to bid for the work at that time. Alternatively, the tender review process may not have
been undertaken by the personnel with the best understanding of the services required.
Consequently, firms which are not the most experienced in that field of activity are chosen, often
with implications for the quality and cost of a project. Delays in project implementation and

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increases in costs can arise using ineffective or inappropriate labor, or errors in calculating how
productive the labor will be. This can happen especially when sub-contractors are used whose
quality is not controlled in the main project contract. In most cases there is a trade-off between
price, experience and track record but the desire to accept the lowest tender does not always lead
to a project that is completed within time and budget. There are cases of contractors and sub-
contractors who go into liquidation during the construction period. This can lead to significant
delays and extra costs arising as the project sponsor has to re-tender the remaining work.
Identifying a new contractor to complete another contractor’s work is difficult because of the
possible liabilities that the new contractor would have to accept for another company’s work.

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

Funding Problems

The overall lack of finance to complete a project, or delays in the payment for services by the
project sponsor can lead to significant problems arising. If the costs of a project have increased
significantly beyond the original estimate, then work on the project may have to stop or be delayed
until additional funds can be found. Funding problems can also arise if funds allocated to one
project have been diverted to other projects within a program of development. If the payment of
invoices by a project sponsor is low, the contractor may begin to commit less resource to a project
and may even cease work if cash flow becomes a problem. In some cases, even when a project is
expected to be entirely profitable, project sponsors may understate the availability of local funding
simply to maximize the level of grant. This can happen with revenue-generating projects
particularly. Such practices can reduce the availability of funding for other projects.

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

Other Factors

In addition to all the categories listed above, experience shows that problems also arise from
premeditated under-estimation of initial costs simply to obtain initial approval for a project. This
can lead to major projects being approved, and started, in the knowledge that actual costs will be
very much higher than the “agreed” estimate. Once started, a high-profile infrastructure project is
often politically difficult to stop. So, when the true costs do become apparent, it is difficult for

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authorities to refuse the additional funding required to complete the project. (Understanding and
Monitoring the Cost-Determining Factors of Infrastructure Projects, A User’s guide- online).

(source: urban development and construction bureau).

2.2.2: Factors contributing for Schedule Slippage

Researches in developing countries especially Africa have made progress in determining the
causes behind project delays. (ABJ, 2016) also explained in their study that, the major causes of
delay in construction projects were delayed payments, financial deficiencies on the part of the
client or contractor, contract modification, economic problems, material procurement, changes in
design drawings, staffing problems, equipment unavailability, poor supervision, construction
mistakes, poor coordination on site, changes in specifications, labor disputes, and strikes. In
Uganda as (Agaba, 2009)) mentioned attributes that participate delays in construction projects to
poor designs and specifications, and problems associated with management and supervision. In
their study, (El-Razek, 2008) found that delayed payments, coordination difficulty, and poor
communication were important causes of delay in Egypt. Studies outside the African continent
seem to also have identified almost similar causes. Major factors contribute project failure are poor
planning, poor site management, inadequate supervisory skills of the contractor, delayed
payments, material shortage, labor supply, equipment availability and failure, poor communication
and rework were the most important causes of delays in the Malaysian Construction Industry.
(Kartan, 2004) Investigation in to the Causes of Delays and Cost Overruns in Uganda’s Public
Sector identified the main factors affecting cost and time overrun as inadequate/inefficient
equipment, tools and plant, unreliable sources of materials on the local market, and site accidents.
Hence, the list of causes confirms above agree with the findings of (Abd. Majid, 1998), who
concluded that if such causes are effectively dealt with, then time overrun can effectively be
mitigated.

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2.2.3: Factors affecting the Quality of Projects

Quality is one of the important key performance indicators of a construction project which may
cause cost overrun and time delays (PMI, 2014) . Researchers have explored various factors
affecting quality of projects fundamentals of which are discussed below. Special attention is once
more given for identifying the factors influencing construction projects. The quality is a key
function in all infrastructure development environments like cost and time. It becomes one of the
vital factors in any construction project (P. E. Love, 1995). Quality is affected by shortage of
materials, equipment, design changes, error in cost estimation and lack of budget (El-Razek, 2008).
The other factors affecting quality are deficiencies in scheduling, inappropriate planning and
unclear evaluation standards (Harvey, 2002) . The significance of these factors depends on type of
projects, working environment and local culture. In construction projects, lack of quality results in
delays, cost overrun, and unsafe structure (FIDIC, 2005).

There are three types of costs associated with quality. First one is appraisal cost: the cost of testing
and inspection, second one is failure cost: the cost of rework and third one is prevention cost: the
cost of maintenance and better design (Ashford., 2002). Many researches have been carried out
both in developed and developing countries to investigate the factors that have a substantial effect
on the quality of construction projects. Below is presented a highlight of the factors affecting
quality of construction projects. Factors that cause quality problems in Pakistan are material prices
escalation, inflation, procurement, selection of material, lack of communication, and poor on site
supervision (S. M. A. Rizwan U. Farooqui, 2005).

As cited by (M. Abas1, 2015) have identified adverse factors on quality of Indian construction
projects, which are bad weather condition, communication problem, lack of project management
skills, and low bids due to excessive competition. Construction project quality in Gaza strip is
significantly affected by availability of construction materials, political environment, site staff
experience and proper documentation (lunda, 2011) studied the factors affecting the quality
performance of building projects in Hong Kong. The major factors are effective project
management, building effective construction team, and environment in which project is conducted.
The findings of (Erik, 2003) show that continuous improvement, training of employees, effective
communication, and building an effective project team are the factors affecting quality. The quality
problems are due to management, improper planning, and carelessness, lack of training and

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improper use of materials (Tarun, 2005) Said studied the major problems with quality performance
in the Indian construction Industry. These problems are lack of technical person availability, lack
of awareness about quality management system, and lack of training workers. (R. H. Abdel -Razek,
2001) discussed the factors that can improve the quality of construction projects. These factors are
correct estimation of cost, implementation of ISO 9000, effective utilization of resources,
implementing new technologies, proper planning and improving quality control system.

2.2.4: Factors Affecting Success of construction projects in Somali region

According to (Siraw, 2011). Finance is one of the big problems that domestic construction firms
are facing in our country. In addition to the scarcity of finance, they lack financial management
skills that hinder their capacity to complete projects on time and within the estimated budget. It
was also found that most of them lack the experience and the capacity to undertake major
construction projects, which requires big sum of money and high technology. Lack of skilled
manpower and professionals in the field is another common feature of the domestic construction
companies. Also, the most important causes of time overrun on construction projects were found
to be slow site clearance, contractors’ financial problems, Inflation, contractors financial problems,
inaccurate cost estimation, poor resource management, progress payments delay by owner,
exchange rate fluctuation and delay in commencement. Few studies are made on success factors
of construction projects in Ethiopia . Yet, the identified gaps by the studies are still prevalent.
Besides, most of them are not recent and are designed to address only one dimension of project
success. The purpose of this study is to consider all the three dimensions of success and to provide
a framework that is believed to improve the performance of these projects in all the three aspects
time, cost and quality.

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 CHAPTER 3:

DYNAMICS OF ANTICIPATED SOLUTION

3.1: Goal and Objective of investigation:

The goal of this study is to assess and identify the common factors that affects success of
construction projects in Ethiopia. These factors may further classify into external factors and
internal factors, these two factors are those who directly involves about affecting any construction
projects in Ethiopia. The internal factors may be defined as the cost or budget of project, Quality
of projects and allowed time frame of project. These three internal factor are those which directly
participate any delay of success of construction projects in the country.

Various researchers have studied different types of projects and identified different factors
affecting successfulness of projects. The Factors that affect the projects’ performance vary with
the various project success dimensions we have discussed so far. Thus, it is planned to put the
factors to the respective dimensions of success. Hence, the sections below will present various
factors contributing for cost overrun, project delays and quality problems as identified by number
of studies made in various countries. Effort is exerted to give special attention to studies made on
construction projects.

3.1.6: Specific Objectives

✓ To identify the factors resulting in schedule slippages in construction projects in Ethiopia

✓ To identify factors responsible for cost overrun and quality problems in construction
projects in Ethiopia
✓ To provide a framework that can be used to improve the future performance of projects at
Ethiopia.

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3.2: METHODOLGY:

This portion presents the methodology that will be in the study. The tools and processes that will
be relevant to gather with data for the research work and the method of data analysis will be
explain. The portion will compose research design, sampling techniques that will use and target
population, data sources, data collection tools, and ethical considerations.

3.2.1: Description of the Study Area

The study area will be limit to construction projects in Ethiopia This will be chosen as it is entirely
involved in managing projects and project deliverables yet having significant gaps in doing so.
The administration of Ethiopia government is responsible for administering and constructing
construction projects in the region.

3.2.2: Research Design and Approach

The study proposal will identify the factors affecting the three dimensions of project success, a
qualitative approach that will be use. The Secondary data will be collect from the reports and other
relevant documents of the Ethiopia government construction authorities or sectors to obtain
quantitative data regarding the original budget and schedule of the projects addressed and the
actual spending of the same. Moreover, primary data will be collecting to identify the factors
resulting in the deviations. Questionnaires have distributed to site and office Engineers as well
contract administrators and project team leaders in the government. And semi structured interview
conducted to a project managers and directors of construction projects in different bureaus in the
government. The responses from these parties and the literature review helps to identify the factors
affecting the performance of the projects in the Ethiopia government. Descriptive methods will
describe the link between the identified factors with each success dimensions and dependence of
cost overrun upon project delays. And the approach that will utilize for the study will be qualitative
approach.

3.2.4: Sources and Instruments of Data Collection

The study will utilize both primary and secondary data sources. Primary data collected by using
open ended questionnaires and semi structured interviews, while secondary data collected from
the organization’s project plans, progress and completion reports. For primary data collection

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purpose, questionnaires will distribute to the site and office Engineers involved in construction
projects, project managers, supervisors and team leaders, contract administrators and other
technical team members; and, semi structured interviews will conduct to a project manager and
directors construction projects in different construction bureaus in Ethiopia.

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 CHAPTER 4:

OVERALL OUTCOMES.

4.1: Strategy and technique:

Target populations of the study have obtained from staffs involved in construction projects in
different sectors (i.e water sector, road and building sectors) in Ethiopia, contract administrators,
technical team members of projects and laboratory technicians were including. The engineers
involved in construction projects include project managers, supervisors, team members and team
leaders also will be obtainable. Thus, the target population was consisting 200 staffs having
relevant professional mentioned above and engaged in the construction projects. All these target
parties were selected due to their involvement of construction projects in Ethiopia. all respondents
were selected for the sample. The sampling method that will be select as a researcher for the study
is simple randomly.

The interviewees and the respondents of the questionnaires were selected based on simple random
sampling of the researcher’s subjective judgment which considers that the selectee gave required
level of information. Simple random sampling was being chosen as it has been possible to
deliberately determine who to include in the study based on their ability to provide necessary and
reliable data. Accordingly, the highest proportion of the sample will come from the site and office
Engineers of the government organization and private construction companies and questions
regarding quality problems of the deliverables of the projects in the government will provide for
experts working in the construction bureaus site engineers as they are believed to provide first-
hand information.

Simple random sampling technique will be employed to select sample respondents. The total
respondents will be 200 staffs including every professional involves construction sector,
in accordance with this the sample size will be calculated by using Yamane formula as shown
below

𝑁
𝑛= = 200 / 1+200(0.005)2 = 133 individuals, where N: is total population respondent,
1+𝑁(𝑒)2

n: sample size and e: error 5 %.

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For analyzing data intended for the purpose, descriptive analysis has been used. Descriptive
analysis was considered describing the link between the factors resulting in project delays, cost
overruns and quality problems and the result performance. While describing the collect data, visual
aids such as graphs will use to make the reader better understand the information. Moreover, the
relationship between the two-construction success affecting factors of cost overrun and the level
of schedule slippage will be analyzed using descriptive analyzing method.

4.2: RESULT:

the collected data from primary and secondary sources, the analysis of the same to answer the
research questions derived from objectives of the study, and the findings from the analysis.

First, the data collected from the progress and completion reports of the selected 5 projects
would be presented. The data from the secondary sources are needed to demonstrate the
variances between the actual and the planned time and cost spent on the projects. The descriptive
analysis was used to interpret the raw data concerning the factors influencing success of projects
in Somali region in to useful information. Frequencies and percentages of responses are
considered in the descriptive analysis. Moreover, tables and charts have been used to present the
findings. The responses from the questionnaires address the identified success factors of the
authority’s projects in all the respective aspects and the responses from interviews revealed the
authority’s practice to overcome them.

4.2.1: Mitigation Measures against Project delays, cost overrun and quality problems

Different researchers have cited number of measures that can be applied to mitigate project
performance problems. Some of the measures are applicable to mitigate two or three of the
problems while some only serve to mitigate a single performance problem.

4.2.2: Mitigation Measures against Project delays

Under the study entitled “Major Mitigation Measures for Delays in Construction Projects”,
(El-Razek, 2008) have identified 30 Methods of avoiding or minimizing delays in construction
projects. The basic methods identified are presented in this section. These are Accurate initial cost
estimates and initial time estimates, Performing a preconstruction planning of project tasks and
resource needs, Adopting a new approach to contract award procedure by giving less weight to

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prices and more weight to the capabilities and past performance of contractors, Selection of a
competent consultant and a reliable contractor to carry out the work, Allocation of sufficient time
and money at the design phase, Availability of resources, Commitment to projects, Competent
project manager , Comprehensive contract documentation, Ensure adequate and available source
of finance until project completion, Frequent progress meeting, Enforcing liquidated damage
clauses, Systematic control mechanism, Contingency allowance, Use up to date technology
utilization, Effective strategic planning, Multidisciplinary/competent project team.

4.2.3: Mitigation Measures against Project Cost Overrun

(Shiban, 2015) Under his study of Avoiding Cost Overruns in Construction Projects in India,
has consulted literatures and categorized the mitigation methods against cost overrun in to
proactive, reactive measures and organizational strategies; the proactive measures are those which
should be adopted in the planning stage of projects which include efficient planning of strategies,
and management of site and supervision of the project; appropriate planning and arrangement of
project; organized regulatory mechanism; and using proper methods for construction (Azis, 2012).
The organizational strategies include: appropriate prominence on previous experience; regular
coordination between the associated parties; increasing human resources in the industry; and
complete administration of contracts (Abadir, 2011). Regular meetings on development,
employing proficient subcontractors and suppliers, attributing less weight to prices, and more
weight to abilities and earlier performance of contractors to improve the contracts and their
procedures are some reactive and organizational strategies. Using channels for perfect information
and communication is a proactive and organizational strategy. Utilization of latest technology is a
proactive and reactive strategy. Undertaking a preconstruction planning regarding the procedures
and resources of project is a proactive, reactive, and organizational strategy.

On the other hand, (Nader Sh. Kandelousi, 2011) as identified numerous mitigation measures
related to time control and cost overrun issues by consulting a Comprehensive literature consisting
of 21 published articles. According to him keeping construction projects within estimated costs
and schedules requires sound strategies, good practices, and careful judgment. There are, however,
steps that can be taken to minimize their causes and effects of time and cost overrun, the major
one is using efficient project management tools and practices.

21 | P a g e
Among the identified mitigating methods are Accurate cost estimation, Allocation of adequate
contingency allowances, adopting clear information and communication channel, adopting
effective and efficient material procurement systems, Allocating sufficient time and money,
Application of professional construction management. Appointing competent site managers,
Appropriate scope definition, choosing experienced subcontractors with good reputation, Close
monitoring, Conducting a process mapping exercise, Controlling design changes.

4.2.4: Mitigation Measures against Project Quality Problems

Mitigating quality problems demand quality management implementation in projects. According

to (PMI, 2014) Quality management processes involve identification of quality standards,
evaluation of overall project performance and quality control and monitoring of projects. Several
tools and techniques were identified as part of the implementation process, like benefit cost
analysis, benchmarking, flow-charting, design of experiments, cost of quality, quality audits,
inspection, control charts, Pareto diagrams, statistical sampling, and trend analysis. also defined in
Project quality management processes flow provides an overview of the processes which include:
Plan Quality Management, Perform Quality Assurance, and Control Quality.

(Harvey, 2002) defined quality planning as a set of activities whose purpose is to define quality
system policies, objectives, and requirements, and to explain how these policies will be applied,
how these objectives will be achieved, and how these requirements will be met.

The role of quality policies in quality management was found to be significant. (FIDIC, 2005).
have recommended organizational level quality policy as an approach over the conventional
planning so that it would be possible to increase quality goal consensus Quality assurance on the
other hand “is oriented towards prevention of quality deficiencies. It aims at minimizing the risk
of making mistakes in the first place, thereby avoiding the necessity for rework, repair or reject.”
(Erik, 2003) Quality control is the use of techniques and activities that compare actual quality
performance with goals and define appropriate action in response to a shortfall. Control Quality is
the process of monitoring and recording results of executing the quality activities to assess
performance and recommend necessary changes. The key benefits of this process include:
identifying the causes of poor process or product quality and recommending and/or acting to
eliminate them; and; validating that project deliverables and work meet the requirements specified
by key stakeholders’ necessary for final acceptance According to (PMI, 2014) quality control relies

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on five basics: a clear definition of quality; a target, a clear goal; a sensor, a way to measure actual
performance; a way to interpret the measurement and compare with the target; and a way to act,
to adjust the process if necessary.

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 CHAPTER 5

ANALYSIS

5.1 : INTERCEPTION RESULTS

Five projects completed in the last five years were considered to demonstrate the performance
level of the construction projects regarding cost and schedule. The information was gathered
from the progressive and completion reports of the projects. The tables below present these
projects and the observed variances from the plan. Moreover, bar charts are used to illustrate the
variation of the actual performance from the planned.

5.1.2: Schedule Variance of Projects

The planned time for completion of the five projects considered are compared against their
actual completion time. The table below presents the comparison.

Table 1: schedule variance of project in Ethiopia.

Project name Planned time for Actual time of Variance of

completion completion schedule

FIK TVET College 01/01/2017 17/06/2018 6 months

Karamarda asphalt road 01/06/2016 14/06/2018 2 years
Dawa bridge 01/3/2018 25/06/2018 3.25 month
Jigjig – dire dawa (gravel 01/11/2017 12/06/2018 7.12 month
road).
Birqod- marsin water 01/5/2016 22/02/2018 2 years
supply project
Source: design and supervision works enterprise (DSWE).

This shows that all the examined projects suffered from delays and 40% of the projects have
slippages of more than 2 years. Below a graph elaborates the schedule variance of each project.

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 schedule variance project
450000000
400000000
350000000
300000000
250000000
200000000
150000000
100000000
50000000
0
FIK TVET College Karamarda asphalt Dawa bridge Jigjig – dire dawa Birqod- marsin water
road (gravel road). supply project

Planned budget for completion Actual budget of completion

Figure 1: pie chart graph of Schedule Variance of projects in Ethiopia.

5.1.3: Cost Variance of Projects

The variance of cost of projects from the budgeted or contracted amount will be presented in the
table below.

Table 4: cost variance of project in Ethiopia.

Project name Planned budget Actual budget of Variance of

for completion completion budget

FIK TVET College 81,230,445.34 83,432,567.00 2, 202,121.66

Karamarda asphalt road 345,567,688.56 385,421,322.76 39,853,634.2

Dawa bridge 32,344,234.00 35,425,150.23 3,080,916.23
Jigjig – dire dawa (gravel 155,376,543.66 192,897,355.12 37,520,811.46
road).
Birqod- marsin water 345,226,581.43 420,164,201.60 74,937,620.17
supply project
Source: design and supervision works enterprise (DSWE).

This shows that only 100% of the projects under the study have suffered from cost overrun. Yet,
the prevalence of low cost overrun alone cannot be a confirmation to good project cost

25 | P a g e
management of the authority. As the works of scholars suggest Project cost management
involves defining the cost of the project and then making sure that it is delivered within the
approved budget including three principal components: cost estimation, budgeting, and control.
The cost estimation component involves estimating the costs of all the resources that will be
charged to the project including: labor, equipment, materials, services, and any contingency
costs. It is the process of developing an approximation of the monetary resources needed to
complete project activities. If inaccuracy of these estimates is significant, they would result poor
project cost management. Significant underestimation of costs would result unreasonable
budgeting for the work planned to be executed rising the probability of quality compromises and
delays for completion while overestimation of costs would be a reason for wastage of resources
and spending of unreasonable costs. Though the study has demanded a measure of inaccuracy of
cost estimates of the projects addressed, it was not possible to find the data due to the authority’s
poor practice of measuring inaccuracies and its poor documentation. Yet, interviews conducted
to project managers and the responses on the questionnaires have indicated that the authority’s
project cost estimates are significantly overstated. Furthermore, according to a documentation
review in planning and budget office of DSWE, huge variances are observed between budgeted
amount for project packages and actual spending. The budgeted amount is often far greater than
the actual outlay. Thus, a further enquiry was found desirable on the project cost management of
the authority.

Below a graph elaborates the cost variance of each project under consideration.

COST VARIANCE PROJECT

Planned budget for completion Actual budget of completion

450000000
400000000
350000000
300000000
250000000
200000000
150000000
100000000
50000000
0
FIK TVET College Karamarda asphalt Dawa bridge Jigjig – dire dawa Birqod- marsin water
road (gravel road). supply project

26 | P a g e
Figure 2: pie chart graph of Cost Variance of projects

5.1.4: Presentation and discussion of Data collected from Primary Sources

Primary data was found desirable to identify the real challenges that the project team face and the
practices adapted impacting success of Ethiopia projects. Likert type of questionnaires were
distributed to project managers, site and office Engineers, project supervisors, technical team
members and project team leaders so that they can be able to identify the causes for project
delays, cost overruns and quality problems of the deliverables. While semi-structured interview
was conducted to a project manager and a director of construction related bureaus, so that it
would be possible to trace the authority’s practice of planning, cost estimation, scheduling and
quality control. Moreover, the interview has helped to recognize the techniques that Ethiopia has
planned and implemented to mitigate the delays, overruns and quality problems. First, the
responses from the questionnaires will be discussed and then follows that of the interviews.

133 individuals including contractors, clients of projects and consultants have been distributed
questionnaire, among them only 72 individuals were responded. This shows that the response
rate is 54% and 72 questionnaires were used for the analysis.

5.1.5: MAJOR CAUSES OF PROJECT DELAYS IN SRS.

The study revealed that all the selected implemented projects in the Ethiopia have delayed. The
respondents have identified number of causes of delays for these and other projects in Ethiopia.
The factors identified by the respondents and their respective frequency are presented in the table
below.

Table 3: reason for project delays in Ethiopia.

S/N Factor for schedule slippage No. of times the

factor has been
identified.
1 Delays in preparation of bid document and agreements 15

2 Delay in signing agreement between stake holders (Poor 10

coordination among stakeholders)
3 Inadequate planning and poor design 12

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 4 Delay in provision of resources and machineries 7
5 Lack of prefeasibility study for contracted projects 17
6 Design and scope changes during implementation 5
7 Delay in commencement of projects 18
8 Technical incompetency and lack of skilled manpower 12
9 Weather conditions 9
10 Poor project Monitoring and Evaluation 15
11 Undertaking Several Projects at a time 7
12 Poor capacity of contractors 5
Source: design and supervision works enterprise (DSWE).

In addition to identifying the factors, the respondents have explained their views towards the
magnitude of the impact of the major factors. According to most of the respondents (57% of them),
delays in administration of right of way obstruction removal and delays in preparation of
supplementary agreements with other stakeholders for utility works are the most important issues
resulting in delays in completion of the projects.

Significant Delay in commencement of the projects, design and scope changes during
implementation, delay in provision of resources and inadequate planning were also considered as
basic factors. Yet, as per the explanation of the respondents, most of the factors depend on each
other. The design problems are for instance reflected on the delays for commencement and several
projects being undertaken at a time results in delay of provision of machineries.

However, most respondents believe that the Schedules are realistic. The challenge is implementing
the plan according to the schedule and this is mostly caused by the previously mentioned factors.

5.1.6:Major causes of project Cost Overrun in SRS.

Though only 100% of the sampled projects have suffered from cost overrun, the researcher aimed
at exploring the reasons behind overruns of costs in the projects undertaken by the authority. As
indicated earlier, interviews conducted to project managers of Ethiopia disclosed that there are
significant miscalculated in the initial cost estimates of projects. Thus, it is reasonable to plan to
further examine the cost control practice of the authority.

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The respondents have identified number of factors affecting success of projects in SRS regarding
cost management. The factors identified, and their respective frequency will be presented in the
table below.

Table 4: Factors resulting in Cost overrun in Ethiopia.

S/N Factor for cost over run No. of times the

factor has been
identified.
1 Inflation, FCY exchange rate fluctuation and instability of the market 5

2 Penalty, Claims and overhead costs in relation to project delays 13

3 Right of way Obstruction Removal 4
4 Incomplete contract document 2
5 Corruption and abuse of resources 15
6 Reworks and misalignment 6
7 Delay in commencement of projects 18
8 Technical incompetency and lack of skilled manpower 12
9 Weather conditions 9
10 Poor project Monitoring and Evaluation 15
11 Undertaking Several Projects at a time 7
12 Poor capacity of contractors 5
Source: design and supervision works enterprise (DSWE).

As it was for project delays, lack of coordination with other construction stakeholder organizations
(client, consultant and contractors) may increase a costs in relation with right of way obstruction
were identified as major causes for cost overruns in the authority’s projects. The respondents
explained that the poor coordination between the authority and the mentioned institutions results
in delay of the utility works till the roads get clear which results additional costs. The instability
of the market was also considered as a factor contributing significantly for cost overrun; some
respondents have declared that price fluctuation of materials in our country have been resulting
the variance of the projects’ cost from the plan.

29 | P a g e
On the other hand, several respondents have admitted that the projects in the authority suffer from
inadequate planning and abuse of resources, and that there are costs not considered during
estimation. Moreover, though the respondents stated that some scope and design changes are
inherent to the nature of road construction projects due to underground conditions of the project
area, design changes are also among the factors resulting in cost overruns. Finally, the respondents
agreed that delay in completion of projects contributes for cost overrun significantly. As per their
explanation, project delays are subject to increase in overheads, claims and other related costs.
Thus, cost overrun will be prevalent.

5.1.7: Major causes of Quality Problems in the project deliverables of Ethiopia.

As one of the objectives of this study is to identify the major factors affecting the quality of project
deliverables of the authority, requests helping to identify the factors were presented to the sampled
respondents involved in construction projects and in examining standardization of materials in the
authority’s laboratory. The respondents have identified number of factors that are presented in the
table below with their respective frequency.

Table 5: Factors resulting in Quality Problems on project deliverables of SRS.

S/N Factor of Quality Problem No. of times the

factor has been
identified.
1 Lack of skilled and committed manpower to quality 17

2 Abuses of resources 12
3 Poor quality of construction materials 15
4 Poor coordination with other stakeholders in construction projects 10
5 Poor design 5
6 Poor attitude towards quality 3
7 Political issues 2
8 Poor performance of contractors 7
Source: design and supervision works enterprise (DSWE).

30 | P a g e
Lack of skilled and committed manpower, poor management system, abuses of resources, and poor
design were among the major internal factors identified to be the causes for the quality problems
observed in the roads constructed by the authority. Most (70%) respondents have complained
about the quality problems subjected to shortage of skilled and committed manpower in the
authority.

On the other hand, the respondents claimed that there are external factors as well contributing for
the failures of the constructed projects to meet the desired level of standard and these factors are
poor quality of materials supplied in the market, problems with the master plan of the City and
political issues.

Among these external factors, Poor coordination with other stakeholders such as EEPCO, ETC
and Sewer lines is again considered to be a major factor influencing the quality of the project
deliverables of the authority, about 70% of respondents declared that poor coordination between
construction involves bureaus with the other stakeholders is the basic reason for quality problems.

By the requests provided to the respondents in the objective of examining the level of tradeoff
between the three success factor dimensions of projects, it could be identified that the authority do
not compromise quality by rushing to meet deadlines and budgets are allocated sufficiently to
construct the desired standard of project.

Other Factors Affecting Project Success in Ethiopia as identified by observation and Interviews

Personal observation of the researcher revealed that the documentation practice of the authority is
so poor that required information regarding completed and ongoing projects cannot be traced
easily. The observation is also supported by response of the interviewees. The poor documentation
practice has contributed for poor ‘lessons learnt’ practice from completed projects.

Moreover, it has been observed that most of the persons assigned to manage and supervise
construction projects are lack project management skills though they have the technical expertise.
Hence, project planning; scheduling, feasibility studies, monitoring and control are only managed
with inadequate knowledge.

As per the project manager interviewed, the cost estimation practice in the authority is inadequate.
First, estimates are not based on complete definition of the project and the scope of work involved.

31 | P a g e
Second, the authority lacks an accounting system and coding scheme that are well aligned with the
work breakdown structure. Thus, costs are only estimated per physical length of the road planned
to be constructed without considering the detailed work packages; and, according to the project
manager, these estimates are extremely exaggerated. And since one of the keys to successful
project completion is an accurate cost estimate, it can be inferred that the estimation practice of
construction related bureaus is one of the drawbacks that resulted poor project cost management.

The authority also lacks a change management strategy which would help to steer out essential
changes before incorporation and to incorporate the same in a way that would not affect the
performance of the projects significantly.

Unforeseen events were also considered as the other reasons for the failure of the authority not to
execute its projects as planned. As per the interviewees, since construction projects is under the
supremacy of the government, accidental orders from the government shall be immediately
executed and this also creates deviations from the plan of the authority.

On the other hand, according to an interview conducted to the director of contract administration
in DSWE, though the authority has given emphasis for quality assurance for prevention of quality
problems by establishing its own laboratory to test the materials to be used in the construction
process, the process is influenced by lack of updated and complete quality assurance manual.
DSWE has been using their own laboratory test to conduct different material and soil strength.

On top of that, the authority’s quality planning is so poor that it lacks a quality policy which shall
be used for constructing urban roads and even these outdated and incomplete guidelines and
procedures are not being followed in the authority cautiously.

The Director has also admitted that the authority’s contract management procedure is outdated
resulting in some quality problems on subcontracted projects.

5.1.8: Relationship between cost overrun and Project Delays

Examining the relationship between project cost overrun and project delays in the organization in
concern is one of the objectives of this study. The responses of many respondents have indicated
that delays are among the major causes to project cost overrun. And among the other identified
factors contributing for cost overrun, exchange rate and inflation, would have exaggerated impact

32 | P a g e
on actual costs when projects are delayed. Thus, mitigating project delays would help the authority
from incurring unplanned costs thus improving its overall projects’ performance.

5.1.9: Major mitigation techniques used against delays, Cost Overruns and Quality problems

Interviews have been conducted to a project manager and the director of the authority’s quality
assurance and road safety inspection directorate of the authority so that it would be possible to
recognize the techniques the authority adapted to mitigate the described project failures.

5.1.10: Mitigation Techniques used against delays

Interviews have been conducted to a project manager of the authority regarding the techniques the
authority adapted to mitigate project delays and the below discussed responses were found.

According to the project manager, the previous practice of scheduling projects in Ethiopia has been
scheduling for the entire work totally. Activity based scheduling was not practiced in the authority.
Yet, recently, different government organizations involve construction has adapted activity based
scheduling and this is believed to help the control significantly.

Moreover, Ethiopian leaders and managers has reformed its organizational structure so that it
would be possible to segregate duties and follow up timely completion of activities easily. Regular
follow up and supervision of activities are also considered as major mitigation techniques against
delays. The progress reports on ongoing projects are also designed to measure progress and
performance so that the supervisor can be able to compare actual performance against plan.

Yet, the authority has not yet begun considering the tools that are often used to monitor project
performance; Gantt charts, control charts, and milestones are not taken in to account.

5.1.11: Mitigation Techniques used against Cost Overruns

As per the project manager, the previous practice of the authority in estimating costs involved
roughly estimating costs based on physical plan which is estimating costs per unit length or poor
estimation of project without defining the cost per work packages. And this has been resulting in
significantly overestimated budgets.

Yet, recently, financial plans are being prepared for work packages (categorized activities required
to complete a project) and this is believed to make the control effective. This implies that the

33 | P a g e
authority has adapted Bottom-up estimating which Involves estimating the cost of individual
activities or work packages, then summarizing or rolling-up the individual estimates to get a
project total (source DSWE). Besides, though it is not yet implemented, the interviews revealed
that authority is planning to use cost accounting techniques to strengthen its control over project
costs.

5.1.12: Mitigation Techniques used against Quality Problems

As per the interview conducted to a project manager and the director of the authority’s quality
assurance, the basic method the organization adapts to overcome quality problems is quality
assurance through laboratory testing of materials. The authority has established its own laboratory
for testing the materials to be used in the construction process and this has been a good tool to
reject substandard materials that deteriorates the qualities of the construction projects. Moreover,
DSWE has authority to engage s methods to control quality conformance to the desired goal.

On the other hand, Ethiopia has recently begun assessing all the concerned departments in order
to identify the gaps resulting quality problems on its projects.

As per the interviews, Ethiopia has also planned for updating its outdated quality manuals so that
applicable procedures and guidelines can be adapted. What is more, the authority has planned to
narrow the awareness and skill gaps observed in the staff through trainings and experience
sharing

5.2: QUESTIONS ABOUT ALTERNATIVES

Research Questions

1. What are the major factors resulting in cost overrun on the construction projects in Ethiopia.

2. What factors are influencing or affecting the schedules and performance of projects undertaken
in Ethiopia?

3. How would it be possible to improve the performance of Construction projects in Ethiopia?

The Questioner type prefer in this research is Likert scale data analyzing the most appropriate
measure of is the mode the most frequent responses, or the median. The best way to display the

34 | P a g e
distribution of responses i.e. (% that agree, disagree etc.) is to use a bar chart. In the
questionnaire was categorized in to three parts need to be analyze separately each.

- Client questionnaire:

In the client questionnaire 13 individuals has been responded. the answers of individuals with
respected Numbers are tabulated below:

Table 6: client questionnaire analysis

Question No. Strong Somewhat Neither Somewhat Strong Mode %of Final analyzed
agree agree agree nor disagree disagree answer answer
disagree

1 8 4 0 1 0 8 61.5 Strong agree

2 4 7 1 0 0 7 53.8 Somewhat
agree
3 6 7 0 0 0 7 53.8 Somewhat
agree
4 0 2 1 8 2 8 61.5 Strong agree

5 10 2 1 0 0 10 76.9 Strong agree

6 0 0 1 9 2 9 69.2 Somewhat
disagree
7 0 0 1 8 4 8 61.5 Somewhat
disagree
8 5 8 0 0 0 8 61.5 Somewhat
agree
This table indicated the question number and number of times repeated answers of questionnaire
below pie-chart is well illustrated.

35 | P a g e
 Chart Title
12

10

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Strong agree Somewhat agree Neither agree nor disagree Somewhat disagree Strong disagree

Figure 3 : pie chart graph of client questionnaire

- Contractor questionnaire:

In the contractor questionnaire 27 individuals has been responded. the answers of individuals
with respected Numbers are tabulated below:

Table 7: contractor questionnaire analysis

Question No. Strong Somewhat Neither Somewhat Strong Mode %of Final
agree agree agree nor disagree disagree answer analyzed
disagree answer

1 0 0 0 2 25 25 92.6 Strong
disagree
2 20 5 1 1 0 20 74 Strong
agree
3 18 9 0 0 0 18 66.6 Strong
agree
4 8 15 1 2 1 15 55.55 Somewhat
agree

36 | P a g e
 5 10 12 2 4 0 12 44.44 Somewhat
agree
6 21 6 0 0 0 21 77.77 Strong
agree
7 12 13 0 2 0 13 48.1 Somewhat
agree
8 14 11 1 1 0 14 51.85 Strong
agree
9 17 8 0 2 0 17 62.9 Strong
agree
This table indicated the question number and number of times repeated answers of questionnaire
below pie-chart is well illustrated.

Chart Title
30

25

20

15

10

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Strong agree Somewhat agree Neither agree nor disagree Somewhat disagree Strong disagree

Figure 4 : pie chart graph of client questionnaire

- Consultant questionnaire:

In the contractor questionnaire 32 individuals has been responded. the answers of individuals
with respected Numbers are tabulated below:

Table 8: contractor questionnaire analysis

Question No. Strong Somewhat Neither Somewhat Strong Mode %of Final analyzed
agree agree agree nor disagree disagree answer answer
disagree

37 | P a g e
 1 22 8 2 0 0 22 68.75 Strong agree

2 9 17 1 5 0 17 54.4 Somewhat
agree
3 24 5 0 0 3 24 75 Strong agree

4 21 10 1 0 0 21 65.6 Strong agree

5 16 13 0 3 0 16 50 Strong disagree

6 18 14 0 0 0 18 56.25 strong agree

7 14 12 1 5 0 14 43.75 Strong agree

8 14 15 1 2 0 15 46.8 Somewhat
agree
9 17 8 0 7 8 17 53.1 Strong agree

This table indicated the question number and number of times repeated answers of questionnaire
below pie-chart is well illustrated.

Chart Title
30

25

20

15

10

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Strong agree Somewhat agree Neither agree nor disagree Somewhat disagree Strong disagree

Figure 5: pie chart graph of client questionnaire (based on Likert)

38 | P a g e
 CHAPTER SIX:

CONCLUSION

6.1: General Discussion

This last chapter of the thesis work will have four main sections. First, summary of the major
findings will be presented. Then the conclusion derived from the findings will be offered followed
by recommendations made based on the conclusions. The framework developed to assist the
project successes of the authority will then be provided. And finally, areas for further studies will
be provided.

Summary of the Major Findings.

✓ The projects undertaken by Ethiopia government are mostly subjected to scope and design
changes and most of the changes are inherent since certain underground conditions of the
project area are not known before the beginning of project execution; yet the authority has
no strategy towards change management.
✓ The authority is in short of skilled man power and most of the projects are managed by
supervisors and project managers having minimal project management skills. And this is
reflected in the inadequate planning, defective cost estimating and control and poor project
monitoring techniques.
✓ Lessons learned from past projects and documentation practices in construction related
bureaus in SRS was found to be poor rising the probability that mistakes will be repeated
in future projects.
✓ Project delays are the most apparent failures in SRS projects and the major causes for the
delays were found to be delays in administration of right of way obstruction removal, Poor
coordination among stakeholders, delay in provision of resources and machineries and
design and scope changes.
✓ Project cost management of the authority was as well found to be lacking as costs are
mostly overestimated and not based on activity packages and cost overruns are observed
on some projects. The major reasons behind the cost overruns were identified to be penalty,
Claims and overhead costs in relation to project delays, reworks and misalignment, Design
and scope changes during implementation and Inadequate planning.

39 | P a g e
 ✓ Quality of project deliverables in SRS is also found to be influenced by Lack of skilled and
committed manpower to quality, lack of complete and updated quality policy and quality
assurance manuals and Poor coordination with other stakeholders. Furthermore, Poor
quality of construction materials was identified as one of the major factors affecting quality
of the authority’s projects.
✓ The mitigation techniques adopted by the authority to overcome delays, cost overrun, and
quality problems are not adequate. Project management tools and desirable practices of the
discipline are not being utilized for the mitigation. Activity based cost estimation, earned
value analysis; schedule controlling tools such as Gant charts and project management
software are farfetched considerations for the authority.
✓ Poor coordination of construction related stakeholder institutions including SRS urban
development and construction bureau, water resource bureau and SDSWE was found to be
a major problem resulting significant project delays, cost escalations and quality
compromises. But, the problem has not yet got a solution.

Effective project management has been frequently defined as completing projects within time, cost
and quality constraints. And project performance can be improved by studying and improving the
factors that affect these three success dimensions. Accordingly, this research has strived to identify
the factors responsible to project delays, cost overrun and quality problems in Ethiopia.

The major factors identified as affecting all the three performance indicators are poor coordination
with other stakeholders, difficulty to administer right of way Obstruction removals, inadequate
planning and lack of skilled manpower.

Besides, delays were mostly found to be caused by delay in provision of resources and
machineries, poor Designs and design and scope changes. While cost overruns are often resulted
by project delays, reworks and misalignment and Design and scope changes during

implementation. Quality problems were traced back on Poor quality of construction materials,
abuse of resources, lack of skilled and committed manpower and lack of complete and updated
quality policy and quality assurance manuals.

40 | P a g e
5.2 Recommendations

➢ The Ethiopian authority shall have clear, complete, and unambiguous definition of projects
and the scope of work involved before executing projects; moreover, planning projects
shall include prioritized and detailed work schedule, drawn from the work breakdown
structure. Poor scoping and planning is costing the authority regarding time, resource and
quality.
➢ The authority shall plan for efficient time management through proper resource planning
and duration estimation so that it would be possible to minimize the delays. Moreover,
Ethiopian authority shall strive to commence projects as planned for delays in
commencement results delays in completion.
➢ As reasonable and accurate system for estimating costs is one of the factors that influence
success of projects, the authority shall develop well-defined project work structures and
adapt an accounting system and coding scheme that are well aligned with the work
breakdown structure.
➢ Ethiopian authority shall develop a concrete change management strategy so that essential
changes can be incorporated without significantly affecting the performance of projects.
➢ The authority shall engage competent and skilled project managers capable of leading
effective project planning, execution, monitoring and control. By doing so, it would be
possible to plan all activities before hand, develop reasonable cost estimates and monitor
and control each step of the execution.
➢ Documentation practice of construction related shall get improved so that it would be
possible to easily trace progress of ongoing projects and to learn lessons from completed
projects with the intentions that mistakes would not be repeated.
➢ The authority should develop its own complete quality policy and update its quality
assurance manual so that it would be possible to have consistent and inclusive quality
guidelines.
➢ Since the quality problems are traced back to poor quality of construction materials as well,
and the delays are also influenced by late provision of the materials, the procurement unit
needs to develop good relations with key suppliers to take advantage of good quality and
on time supply of materials.

41 | P a g e
 ➢ the authority shall urge for the attention of the concerned government organ to coordinate
all stakeholders in the intention that they can harmonize their respective strategic plans. By
doing so, it would be possible to avoid the delays in relation with right of way of utility
lines and houses, the costs incurred by the delays and reworks resulting from not
incorporating of the utility lines before the project gets constructed and the quality
problems in relation.

Based on the major findings of the study and the reviewed literatures in the earlier chapters, the
researcher has developed a framework which can be utilized by the authority under the study to
improve its project performance.

As it was mentioned frequently, the authority is suffering from lack of coordination of stakeholders
and lack of skilled manpower to manage the planning, execution and monitoring of projects which
resulted unclear and incomplete scoping, inadequate planning and insufficient monitoring of
activities. Moreover, the poor practice of the authority’s documentation and the resulting
undeveloped culture for ‘lessons learnt’ from past projects were also part of the reasons behind the
failures of the authority’s projects to get completed within the predefined budget, schedule and to
the acceptable level of quality. On the other hand, lack of updated and complete quality policy and
quality assurance manuals has as well been found to be a factor influencing the quality of project
deliverables in region. Thus, the researcher has considered relevance of development of a
framework incorporating the ways to overcome all these problems.

Fig 6: Project Success frame work.

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