The Chartered Institute of Project Managers of Nigeria (CIPMN) has raised concern over the menace of building collapse in the country.
The organisation warned that the trend would continue if the government refused to engage project managers in construction activities.
Building collapses are common in Nigeria where millions live in dilapidated structures and construction standards were often flouted.
Enforcement of safety regulations and use of shoddy materials have been highlighted after a high-rise building under construction collapsed in the Ikoyi District of Lagos, killing at least 45 people in 2021.
Ten people were killed when a three-storey building collapsed in the Ebute-Metta area of Lagos in May 2022.
The government had called for improved construction standards, describing the frequency of building collapses increasingly embarrassing.
An architect and a fellow of the CIPM, Otunba Dejo Olawoye, described Nigeria as a country with the highest number of abandoned projects in Africa.
He stated this recently in Abuja during the induction of about 100 members into the CIPM, a statutory organisation, established to train, approve and discipline all project managers in the country.
He said, “Nigeria is a country with the highest number of abandoned projects in Africa, maybe in the world. Most 65 per cent of the projects were started 20 years ago and never completed.
“Even the ones that were completed are the ones that were not well managed. It’s one thing to do projects, it’s another thing that it serves its purpose.
“In the last one year, there have been much more collapsed building than ever in Nigeria; this actually a failure of government engaging project managers.
“Project managers are those who at the end of every project makes sure that the project is done and benefits are coming from it”.
Speaking at the event, the President/Chairman, Governing Council of the Institute, Dr. Victoria Okoronkwo, said events of recent times has challenged the institute a great deal and in an unusual manner.