Investigating the root causes for delays in completion of private building projects in Kampala: Case study area-Makerere Hill

Abstract

Majority of the building/construction projects in Uganda and Kampala in particular and most developing countries do not get completed within the initially set targets of time, cost and also quality. Delays in projects are seen to frustrate the process of development and also have an immeasurable cost to the different stakeholders and the public at large. With this regard, it has become of vital importance to investigate the causes of delays so as to improve the construction industry performance and enable it to achieve the objectives. This research study aimed at investigating the causes of delays in private building projects and its specific objectives were; To identify the causes of delays on private building projects in from different players, To analyze the effects of construction project delays to the environment, the public and the economy and To suggest workable solutions to minimize the problem of delayed building projects in Kampala. The researcher reviewed literature of books, journals, articles and unpublished reports on the topic. This research study employed a survey approach with the case study area of Makerere hill. The samples were purposively selected and primary data was collected through questionnaires and interviews. The research study found that major delays in private building projects were caused by construction finance. Delays in construction projects were found to impact negatively on cost performance, time performance and quality of the final product.