Ethiopia’s booming construction is propelling local contractors to climb the ladder of wealth but some complains about how certain businesses are taking shape in the sector.
Construction is perhaps a show of force in Ethiopia’s growing economy. High-rise buildings are mushrooming here and there and at the heart of the growing sector are local experts, contractors and laborers.
While both the government and the private sector are making huge investment in the sector, quite a number of contractors have joined the sector having huge capital and technological know-how.
As the sector transforms itself, many local contractors are making their fortune with it. Nationally, there are 15,000 local contractors involved in the sector. In the capital only, 95 percent of the ongoing construction contracts are given to local contractors.
Local capacity and contractors are powering Ethiopia’s construction boom and playing no small role in changing the face of the industry.
Despite the growth of the sector, the contract management does not change a bit where some complain over lack of level ground for all contractors.
“There is rapid expansion of construction that we have market opportunities but could not build capacity to win private contracts,” said Genet Fikade who joined the sector in 2010 as contractor. “Corruption is surfacing in the sector. There are many cases of irregularities in awarding bid. As many contractors are doing better, some others are appearing fragile.”
Local contractors are facing various challenges. “There are times when my contracts terminated for unknown reasons Construction is a wealth creating sector and can lift many people out of poverty as long as rules and regulations are met. Informal contractors are outnumbering for informal contractors because the latter face financial constraint ,” Genet added.
Biniyam Terefe is also a contractor turned designer. He admitted that many contractors who are taking part in the ongoing government housing project which some progressing well. “However, others have seen their businesses affected over lack of equal ground for all contractors.”
There is huge capacity limitation from the contractors’ side which forces some to pull out of the sector. Thus, the government needs to bridge this gap. With the expansion of housing projects and other infrastructural developments, youth through micro and small-scale enterprises are becoming part of the growth of the construction sector.
There is a notable effort to encourage professionalism and local contractors. Part of such attempt is the preparation of a capacity building framework that is taking a final shape and will come into force very shortly.
According to Ministry of Construction, Professionals and Companies Capacity Building Bureau Head Eyasu Samson the framework intends to create efficient local contractors. “One has to be qualified to be able to exploit the opportunities the sector is creating. In this regard, through assessing the competence of the contractors, capacity building programs are put in place and relatively their execution capacity is improving over time.”
And yet, the local contractors should do more to catch up and compete with international companies. The government has attached due attention to local contractors’ capacity building with a view to upgrading their competitiveness at global level.
It is to recall that the Addis Ababa Construction Bureau has finalized the preparation of Construction Professionals’ Code of Ethics to address the irregularities and malpractices facing the construction sector.
While the construction sector is growing in leaps and bounds, there appears to be different challenges particularly in terms of the quality that arises from malpractices committed by both the government and private contractors said, Eng. Yonas Ayalew, Addis Ababa Construction Bureau Head.
The regulation puts an obligation on contractors, architects, engineers and other professionals to stick to the legal and professional standards while taking part in any construction activity.
“We have seen informal contractors extensively engaged in the construction sector. The commercial law does not prohibit informal contractors from engaging in the sector but this regulation would force them meet professional standards in any construction process,” he added.
Constraints in the capacity and performance of local contractors, utilization of appropriate construction technologies, and application of proper building regulations and standards have been mentioned as the major challenges of the construction sector.
If the shortcomings are addressed, local contractors will not only empower themselves but could play help others to make their bread through creating jobs.