Investigating the effectiveness of the Contractor Development Programme in road construction projects in the INK area (Inanda, Ntuzuma, KwaMashu), Durban.
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Date
2019
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Abstract
The role played by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) cannot be undervalued as it facilitates fairness and uniformity in construction procurement. This is achieved through transformation policies and other initiatives. The Contractor Development Programme (CDP) is one of the government initiatives intended to develop small contractors to sustainable companies. However, documented research indicates that the programme has been performing poorly due to implementation failures but there is little research that investigates contractor performance within the programmes. This research sought to investigate the challenges impacting on the performance of contractors within the Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu (INK) development programme. The intention was to understand the overall value add of the programme and realise areas that required attention. The dimensions used to measure contractor performance were, financial capacity, project performance and quality of work.
The quantitative method was used for this study and the sampling technique utilised was the purposive method. The programme had a population of 50 contractors and the sample size was 40. The response obtained was 38 participants, which translates to a response rate of 76%. The descriptive statistics was used to present the results, and the internal reliability of 0.772 was measured by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Data was collected by in-house questionnaires, the researcher visited the participants at their training centre. The findings from this research showed that contractors were not improving in their financial position and project performance. In addition, this research revealed that poor regulation of the industry, contractor incompetency, lack of work opportunities and funding were the biggest hindrances for contractors’ development. Therefore, based on the outcomes of this research, the researcher recommends that there should be stringent requirements associated with the selection of participants. The CIDB must enforce adherence to the competence criteria, otherwise programmes that do not abide should be penalized. Secondly, the programmes should focus on transferring technical knowledge to contractors, primarily practical skills in the form of artisanship. This can be achieved through collaborations with government and educational or training institutes. Finally, programmes must ring-fence work opportunities and find ways of ensuring contractors receive funding.
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Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.