Business
Poverty, Bane Of Poor Construction Project Management -Minister
The Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ms Amal Pepple, says under-development and poverty are responsible for the “poor construction project management in Nigeria’’.
Pepple said this on Wednesday in Abuja at a two-day workshop organised by the Nigerian Institution of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), which has the theme “Essential Competencies for Construction Project Management’’.
The minister said the workshop was aimed at examining and proffering solutions to the challenges facing the building industry.
She stated that poor project management skills could lead to cost over-runs, project delivery delays and abandoned projects.
“The cases of failed development and poverty in Nigeria are linked to poor construction project management,’’ Pepple said.
According to her, infrastructure such as roads, railways, ports, power plants, housing estates and hospitals, among others, are critical to Nigeria’s economic development, including its social aspects.
She stated that these infrastructure were also essential determinants of productivity.
The minister said the more advanced the country’s construction project management competencies were, the more efficient Nigerian businesses would be.
“Thereby, we will be creating more employment opportunities,’’ she said.
Pepple reiterated the readiness of the ministry to cut down on its operations in line with President Goodluck Jonathan’s Transformation Agenda.
She commended the Institution for organising the workshop and called for a synergy between the public and private sectors to bridge the infrastructure gap in the country.
In his welcome remarks, Agele Alufohai, the NIQS President, had said the organisation would collaborate with the ministry to ensure that Nigerians got value for money through competence.
Agele said the NIQS would continue to support federal government’s programmes and policies, especially on infrastructure enhancement.