See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/324006909

Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction

Industries

Article in Journal of Construction Engineering and Management · December 2016

DOI: 10.11648/j.jccee.20160101.13

CITATIONS READS

18 22,148

2 authors:

Werku Hareru Kumar Neeraj Jha

Dire Dawa University Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
9 PUBLICATIONS 29 CITATIONS 192 PUBLICATIONS 5,355 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Werku Hareru on 26 March 2018.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering
2016; 1(1): 18-29
http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/jccee
doi: 10.11648/j.jccee.20160101.13

Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian

Construction Industries
Werku Koshe1, *, K. N. Jha2
1
Dept. of Construction Technology & Management, Dire Dawa Institute of Technology, Dire Dawa, Ethiopia
2
Dept. of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, India

Email address:
Werku.koshe@yahoo.com (W. Koshe), knjha@civil.iitdac.in (K. N. Jha)

To cite this article:

Werku Koshe, K. N. Jha. Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries. Journal of Civil, Construction
and Environmental Engineering. Vol. 1, No. 1, 2016, pp. 18-29. doi: 10.11648/j.jccee.20160101.13

Received: October 17, 2016; Accepted: November 4, 2016; Published: December 2, 2016

Abstract: Construction delays are occurring in every phase of a construction project and are common problems in
construction projects in Ethiopia. Moreover, it is well known that the delays in construction projects are the major causes of
project failure. If the delay is not identified and the corrective project management decision is not taken in time a project may
incur extra cost and extension of project time, which gives rise to dissatisfaction to all the parties involved and nowadays it’s
becoming a major obstruction for their development for developing countries like Ethiopia. This research first identified 88 key
factors causing delay in Ethiopian construction industries, and then the most common and critical causes of construction delay
were evaluated by using both the data collected in a survey of construction managers, resident engineers, contractors, and
clients, and interviews with senior professionals in the field. The findings show that the main critical factors that cause
construction delays in Ethiopia are: (1) Difficulties in financing project by a contractor; (2) Escalation of the materials price;
(3) Infective project planning; (4) Scheduling or resource management; (5) Delay in progress payments for completed works,
(6) Lack of skilled professionals in the field of construction management in the organization, and (7) Fluctuating labor
availability season to season /Seasonal labors availability. This study shows that in Ethiopia only 8.25% projects have been
finished to the original targeted completion date. The remaining 91.75% delayed 352% of its contractual time. This paper
finally came up with solutions towards reducing the impact of delays on construction projects in Ethiopia.
Keywords: Construction Delay, Delay Causes, Top-Ten Delay Factors

Ethiopia, the construction industry is the highest recipient of

1. Introduction and Literature Review government budget in terms of government development
A construction project is commonly acknowledged as program. Consequently, public construction projects
successful, when it is completed on schedule and within the consume an average annual rate of nearly 60% of the
agreed budget, with the highest quality and in the safest government’s capital budget [4].
manner, in accordance with the specifications and to Construction delays can be defined as the late completion
stakeholders’ satisfaction. Functionality, profitability to of work compared to the planned schedule or contract
contractors, absence of claims and court proceeding and schedule. Construction delays can be minimized only when
“fitness for purpose” for occupiers have also been used as their causes are identified. [26], [28] defined the word
measures of project success [3]. “delay’’ as something happening at a later time than planned,
For any public or private construction firms, upgrading the expected, specified in a contract or beyond the date that the
project performance can be taken as one of their main parties agreed upon for the delivery of a project. [19] Define
objectives. This can be achieved by reducing cost, finishing delay as the slowing down of work without stopping
projects on schedule and increasing quality. construction entirely and that can lead to time overrun either
Public construction projects in Ethiopia are parts of the beyond the contract date or beyond the date that the parties
country’s development initiative. It shares considerable have agreed upon for the delivery of the project. [25]
amount of the country’s scarce financial resources. In Classify delays into non-excusable delays, excusable with-
compensable delays, excusable without compensable delays
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 19

and concurrent delays. Non-excusable delays are delays, firms ranked project management highest. These causes were
which the contractor either causes or assumes the risk for. categorized in 10 main groups: materials, manpower,
Excusable without compensable delays are delays caused by equipment, financing, changes, government relations, project
factors that are not foreseeable, beyond the contractor’s management, site conditions, environment and contractual
reasonable control and not attributable to the contractor’s relationships.
fault or negligence. Excusable with compensable delays [6] Identify the most important causes of delay in
these are compensable delays are excusable delays, construction projects with traditional type contracts from the
suspensions, or interruptions to all or part of the work caused viewpoint of construction contractors and consultants.
by an act or failure to act by the owner resulting from Results of their survey indicates that contractors and
owner’s breach of an obligation, stated or implied, in the consultants agreed that owner interference, inadequate
contract. Concurrent delays occur when both owner and the contractor experience, financing and payments, labor
contractor are responsible for the delay. Delay or extension productivity, slow decision making, improper planning, and
of time: the contractor will be accountable for damages if the subcontractors are among the top ten most important factors.
actual completion date of the works occurs after the agreed [2] Conducted a time performance survey of different
completion date unless the delay is caused by a matter for types of construction projects in Eastern Province of Saudi
which an extension of time is available and the contractor Arabia to determine the causes of delay and their importance
complies with the notice and other requirements under the according to each project participant (owner, consultant, and
contract. [25]. contractor). It was concluded that 70% of projects experience
The construction industry is very large, complex, and time overrun. The survey was conducted with 23 contractor's,
requires huge capital investments. Delay in the completion of 19 consultant and 15 owners. They identified seventy-three
a construction project are one of the biggest problems facing (73) causes of delay and grouped them into nine classes
by the construction industry and can be a major problem for during the research. The most common cause of delay
construction’s project participant leading to costly disputes identified by all three parties was “change order. The overall
and adverse relationships amongst project participants. results are stated that the factor related to labor, contractor,
Delays occur in every construction project and the project owner and consultant are in the highest rank.
significant of these delays varies considerably from project to [27] Studied problems related to delays and cost overruns
project. Many researchers have studied the causes of project during construction phase and they identified that the cause
delays in public construction industry. The findings of such for construction delays and cost overruns in overall context
studies have been reviewed for this research. are poor site management and supervision, poor project
[13] Identified 16 major factors that caused delays and cost management assistance, financial difficulties of owner,
overruns in Nigeria. A questionnaire survey was carried out financial difficulties of contractor and design changes are the
with contractors, consultants and client organizations in five most frequent, severe and important causes.
Nigeria. They presented that the causes of delay and cost [9] Conducted a quantitative analysis of construction
overruns in Nigerian construction projects were attributed to delays by examining the records of 130 public building
finance and payment arrangements, poor contract projects constructed in Jordan during the period of 1990-
management, shortages in materials, inaccurate estimation, 1997. The researcher presented regression models of the
and overall price fluctuations. relationship between actual and planned project duration for
[2] Identified 56 main causes of delay in Saudi large different types of building facilities. The analysis also
building construction projects and their relative importance. included the reported frequencies of time extensions for the
Based on the contractors surveyed the most important delay different causes of delays. The researcher concluded that the
factors were: preparation and approval of shop drawings, main causes of delay in construction projects relate to
delays in contractor’s progress, payment by owners and designers, user changes, weather, site conditions, late
design changes. From the view of the architects and deliveries, economic conditions, and increase in quantities.
engineers the cash problems during construction, the
relationship between subcontractors and the slow decision 2. Research Methodology
making process of the owner were the main causes of delay.
However, the owners agreed that the design errors, labor After critically reviewed the existing literatures related to
shortages and inadequate labor skills were important delay causes of construction delay (CCD) in construction projects,
factors. 88 CCD factors were identified under eight broad categories
[11] Carried out a research to find out the causes of delays namely client related, consultant/supervisor related,
in construction industry in Lebanon. A total of 64 causes of contractor related, designer related, labor related material
delays were identified through research in which client, related equipment, and external related. This identified CCD
contractor and consultant were undertaken the study. All factors adopted for the present work (CCD in Ethiopian
three parties generally agreed on the ranking of the major public building construction project) to design the
categories of delay factors. Owners had more concerns with questionnaire. The questionnaire were designed to assess the
regard to financial issues, while contractors ranked opinion of clients, design engineers, consultants, and
contractual relationships highest, and finally, consultants contractors on the relative importance of causes of delay in
20 Werku Koshe and K. N. Jha: Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries

Ethiopian public building construction and the questionnaire frequency index, and an important index. The analysis
was designed in order to evaluate the frequency of included ranking of CCD factors and sources of delay
occurrence and degree of severity of the identified 88 causes factors. Discussion of the results was based on personal
of delay factors. In the process of the questionnaire design interviews that were conducted to clarify responses.
two parameters are selected; that used to measure the Interviewees were experts from the Association of
frequency of occurrence and degree of severity. In the Construction Contractors and the Ministry of Housing and
questionnaire design for frequency of occurrence of adopted Public Works. The scope of this research includes public
CCDF 1 to 5 Likert scale (LS) (1 for never and 5 for always) building construction in Ethiopia. The population consists of
was assigned. For degree of severity level also 1 to 5 LS (1 all the owners, consultants, and contractors in the public
for less, 5 for extreme). building construction in Ethiopia.
The collected data was analyzed by using severity index,
3. Result and Discussion
3.1. Response Rate

Table 1. Response Rate.

Population(N) Sample(n) No. of distributed sample Number of response collected No. of valid response Response rate
152 110 83 56 51 61.44%

The above table 1 shows that 83 questionnaires were from people having experience of 5-10 years (35.29%) and
distributed to respondents. 56 responses are collected. Out of 10 – 15 years (35.29%). The average experience of the
56 collected responses only 51 were valid. This is because; respondents is about 12 years. The sample consisted of
the respondents did not properly fill 5 questionnaires. The project and site managers, resident engineers, architects,
response rate of respondents having different experience is structural engineers, service engineers, contract
shown in the graph and table 2. Maximum responses come administrators, design managers and construction managers.
Table 2. Working Experience of the Respondents.

Experience 0 to 5yrs. 5 to 10yrs. 10 to 15yrs. 15 to 20yrs. 20 to 25yrs. Work exp.= >25yrs. TOTAL
No. 3 7 5 1 1 1 18
Clients
% 16.67 38.89 27.78 5.56 5.56 5.56 100
No. 2 6 5 0 0 2 15
Consultants
% 13.33 40.00 33.33 0.00 0.00 13.33 100
No. 1 5 8 1 2 1 18
Contractors
% 5.56 27.78 44.44 5.56 11.11 5.56 100
Total No. 6 18 18 2 3 4 51
Percentage of Respondents % 11.76 35.29 35.29 3.92 5.88 7.84 100.00

delay causes that are ranked according to Frequency Index

3.2. Ranking of Delay Factors (F.I),Severity Index (S. I), and Importance Index (I. I) are
[2], [1] Mean and standard deviation of each individual shown in Table 3, 4, & 5. From clients,
factor is not a suitable measure to assess overall rankings as consultants/supervisors, and contractors point of view top 10
they do not reflect any relationship between them and hence constructions delay factors are identified. Among the listed
I. I (Importance Index) was used for the study which can be top ten delay factors the most frequent and most critical
calculated using the following equation: delay factors are difficulties in financing project by
contractors, escalation of material price, ineffective project
×
Frequency Index (F.I %) =∑ ( ) × 100 planning, scheduling and resource management, delay in
×
progress payment for completed works, and lack of skilled
×
Severity Index (S.I %) =∑ ( ) ×100 professional in construction projects organization.
×

.× . 3.2.1. From Owners/Client’s Point of View

Importance Index (I.I) (%) =
From clients point of view uppermost 10-construction
delay factors are listed in table 3. Among the listed top ten
Where aif and ais are numbers of respondents who choose a
delay factors the most frequent and most critical delay factors
certain frequency and severity degree respectively, nif and nis
are an escalation of material price and difficulties in
are degrees of frequency and severity respectively (1 or 2 or
financing project by contractors.
3 or 4 or 5), N is total number of respondents. The top ten
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 21

Table 3. Ranking of causes of delay by Client side.

FO DS Importance Index
Delay factors Categories
FI RANK SI RANK RII RANK
DF67 Escalation of materials price Material 87.06 2 90.59 1 78.87 1
DF32 Difficulties in financing project by contractor Contractor 88.24 1 84.71 5 74.74 2
DF49 In sufficient data collection and survey before design Designer 83.53 6 89.41 2 74.69 3
DF37 Supplying poor quality material by contractor Contractor 85.88 3 84.71 5 72.75 4
Lack of skilled professional in construction PM(project
DF29 Contractor 83.53 6 87.06 3 72.72 5
management) in the organization
DF30 Infective project planning, scheduling or resource management Contractor 84.71 4 84.71 5 71.75 6
DF42 Poor site management and supervision Contractor 84.71 4 82.35 9 69.76 7
DF23 Preparing Incomplete/un detailed BOQ Consultant/Supervisor 78.82 10 85.88 4 67.70 8
DF63 Unqualified/inadequate experienced labour Labour 81.18 9 81.18 10 65.90 9
DF74 Shortage of equipment Equipment 76.47 13 84.71 5 64.78 10

3.2.2. From Consultants Point of View

From consultants/supervisors point of view top 10 construction delay factors are listed in table 4. Among the listed top ten
delay factors the most frequent and most critical delay factors are difficulties in financing project by contractors and ineffective
project planning, scheduling and resource management.

Table 4. Ranking of causes of delay by Consultant side.

FO DS Importance Index
Delay factors Categories
FI RANK SI RANK RII RANK
DF32 Difficulties in financing project by contractor Contractor 85.33 1 88.00 1 75.09 1
DF30 Infective project planning, scheduling or resource management Contractor 80.00 3 88.00 1 70.40 2
DF58 Low productivity of labour Labour 78.67 4 82.67 4 65.03 3
DF67 Escalation of materials price Material 81.33 2 77.33 9 62.90 4
DF37 Supplying poor quality material by contractor Contractor 76.00 5 82.67 4 62.83 5
Lack of skilled professional in construction PM(project
DF29 Contractor 74.67 8 84.00 3 62.72 6
management)in the organization
DF41 Poor coordination and communication with other parties Contractor 76.00 5 76.00 12 57.76 7
DF68 Fluctuatinglaborsavailabilityseasontoseason/Seasonallaborsavailability Labour 73.33 10 77.33 9 56.71 8
DF85 Price fluctuations Material 70.67 12 78.67 6 55.59 9
DF68 Late delivery of materials Material 73.33 10 74.67 13 54.76 10

3.2.3. From Contractors Point of View

From contractors point of view Top-10 construction delay factors are listed in table 5. Among the listed top ten delay factors
the most frequent and most critical delay factors are delay in progress payments for completed work and fluctuating labors
availabilities season to season (seasonal labors availabilities).

Table 5. Ranking of causes of delay by Contractor side.

FO DS Importance Index
Delay factors Categories
FI RANK SI RANK RII RANK
DF14 Delay in progress payments for completed works Client 88.89 1 86.67 2 77.04 1
Fluctuating labours availability season to season/Seasonal
DF55 Labour 87.78 2 84.44 3 74.12 2
labours availability
DF68 Late delivery of materials Material 83.33 3 82.22 6 68.52 3
DF32 Difficulties in financing project by contractor Contractor 74.44 13 87.78 1 65.35 4
Type of project bidding and award i.e. negotiation, lowest
DF13 Client 78.89 4 82.22 6 64.86 5
bidder.
Bureaucracy (Excessively complicated administrative
DF1 Client 77.78 8 82.22 6 63.95 6
procedure)
DF67 Escalation of materials price Material 77.78 8 81.11 9 63.09 7
DF54 Unclear and inadequate details in drawings Designers 78.89 4 78.89 13 62.23 8
DF70 Poor quality of construction materials Material 77.78 8 80.00 11 62.22 9
DF23 Preparing Incomplete/un detailed BOQ 78.89 4 77.78 17 61.36 10

3.2.4. Combined Results (Clients, Consultants, and Contractors)

The combined results show that the delay in construction projects is mostly occurred by the difficulty financing by
contractors, escalation of materials price, ineffective project planning, scheduling and resource management, delay in progress
payment for completed works, lack of skilled professional in construction projects organization, fluctuating labors availabilities
season to season (seasonal labors availabilities), late delivery of materials, low productivity of labors, lack of technical
experience of employees and insufficient data collection and survey. As shown in table 6:
22 Werku Koshe and K. N. Jha: Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries

Table 6. Ranking of causes of delay by all parties (combined).

Construction Frequency of Occurrence Degree of Severity Importance Index

Delay factors Categories
Delay FI RANK SI RANK RII RANK
Difficulties in financing project by
DF32 Contractor 80.78 1 85.10 1 68.75 1
contractor
DF67 Escalation of materials price Material 80.39 2 81.57 4 65.57 2
Infective project planning, scheduling or
DF30 Contractor 77.25 5 83.53 2 64.53 3
resource management
Delay in progress payments for completed
DF14 Clients 78.43 4 80.39 5 63.05 4
works
Lack of skilled professional in
DF29 construction PM(project management) in Contractor 74.90 7 83.53 2 62.57 5
the organization
Fluctuating labours availability season to
DF55 Labour 78.82 3 76.86 6 60.59 6
season/ Seasonal labours availability
DF68 Late delivery of materials Material 75.29 5 77.65 5 58.46 7
DF58 Low productivity of labour Labour 73.33 7 74.90 9 54.93 8
Unqualified/inadequate experienced
DF63 Labour 72.94 `10 64.28 11 46.89 9
labour
Insufficient data collection and survey
DF49 Designers 71.37 14 65.64 8 46.85 10
before design

Table 7. Ranking of causes of delay by all parties (combined).

No. Delay Factors Category F.I Rank S.I Rank IMP.I Rank
DF1 Bureaucracy (Excessively complicated administrative procedure) Clients 68.24 22 70.59 28 48.17 21
DF2 In adequate client’ finance Clients 59.22 60 66.27 46 39.24 52
DF3 Delay in site delivery Clients 60.00 56 60.00 65 36.00 63
DF4 Change/ Variations order Clients 73.33 8 65.10 48 47.74 22
DF5 Late approval for payment Clients 63.53 39 71.37 22 45.34 34
Regular interference, poor communication and coordinate on with
DF6 Clients 60.78 50 61.57 61 37.42 59
other parties
DF7 Improper project feasibility study Clients 53.73 71 58.43 70 31.39 70
DF8 Lack of competent representative Clients 60.78 50 63.14 56 38.38 54
DF9 Lack of experience of owner in construction project Clients 59.61 58 60.39 63 36.00 64
DF10 Lack of incentive for contractors to finish ahead of schedule Clients 69.02 19 59.61 67 41.14 45
DF11 Slowness in decision making Clients 72.55 11 72.55 17 52.63 12
DF12 Suspension of work by the owner Clients 47.06 83 59.61 67 28.05 78
DF13 Type of project bidding and award i.e.negotiation, lowest bidder. Clients 68.24 22 68.24 35 46.56 25
DF14 Delay in progress payments for completed works Clients 78.43 4 80.39 5 63.05 4
Supervisor/
DF15 Corruption 54.12 70 60.00 65 32.47 69
Consulate
Wrongtimeestimate(i.e.scheduleddurationisnotenoughforconstructin Supervisor/
DF16 67.45 26 74.12 12 49.99 19
gtheproject) Consulate
Supervisor/
DF17 Lack of technical professional in the consulting organization 66.67 28 70.98 26 47.32 23
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF18 Lack of experience of staff in management and technical inspection 63.53 39 68.63 33 43.60 39
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF19 Conflicts between consultant and design engineer 54.90 69 52.16 82 28.64 77
Consulate
Delay in approving major change in the scope of work via Supervisor/
DF20 65.49 33 71.76 20 47.00 24
consultant Consulate
Supervisor/
DF21 Inflexibility(rigidity)of consultant 58.43 64 59.22 69 34.60 66
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF22 Change in drawing and specification 67.84 24 67.84 39 46.03 29
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF23 Preparing Incomplete/un detailed BOQ 70.98 15 73.73 13 52.33 15
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF24 Late in reviewing and approving design document 63.92 37 66.67 44 42.61 42
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF25 In accurate site inspection 60.00 56 63.92 51 38.35 55
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF26 In adequate site investigation 60.78 50 67.06 43 40.76 48
Consulate
Supervisor/
DF27 Delay in performing testing and inspection 59.61 58 61.96 60 36.93 60
Consulate
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 23

No. Delay Factors Category F.I Rank S.I Rank IMP.I Rank
Supervisor/
DF28 Poor coordination and communication with other parties 66.27 31 68.24 35 45.22 35
Consulate
Lack of skilled professional in construction PM(project
DF29 Contractor 74.90 7 83.53 2 62.57 5
management) in the organization
DF30 Infective project planning, scheduling or resource management Contractor 77.25 5 83.53 2 64.53 3
DF31 Mistakes during construction and Rework due to error Contractor 60.39 53 67.84 39 40.97 46
DF32 Difficulties in financing project by contractor Contractor 80.78 1 85.10 1 68.75 1
DF33 Inadequate contractor experience Contractor 62.35 45 68.24 35 42.55 43
DF34 Inappropriate construction method Contractor 63.14 43 68.24 35 43.08 40
DF35 Centralization with top management Contractor 67.45 26 67.84 39 45.76 31
DF36 Incompetent project team Contractor 65.88 32 69.41 32 45.73 32
DF37 Supplying poor quality material by contractor Contractor 70.98 15 75.69 9 53.72 11
DF38 Frequent change of subcontractors Contractor 59.22 60 63.92 51 37.85 57
DF39 Unreliable subcontractor Contractor 52.55 77 56.86 73 29.88 72
DF40 Lack of coordination with sub contractors Contractor 58.82 63 64.31 49 37.83 58
DF41 Poor coordination and communication with other parties Contractor 63.14 43 63.92 51 40.36 49
DF42 Poor site management and supervision Contractor 70.20 17 72.16 18 50.65 16
DF43 Obsolete technology Contractor 63.53 39 62.75 58 39.86 51
DF44 Poor health and safety Contractor 66.67 28 62.35 59 41.57 44
DF45 Poor understanding of accounting and financial principles Contractor 64.31 36 69.80 30 44.89 36
DF46 Complexity of projected sign Designers 53.33 73 54.12 76 28.86 74
DF47 Design changes by owner or his agent during construction Designers 64.71 35 68.63 33 44.41 37
DF48 Design errors made by designers Designers 63.53 39 72.16 18 45.84 30
DF49 In sufficient data collection and survey before design Designers 71.37 14 76.08 8 54.30 10
DF50 Lack of experience of design team in construction projects Designers 60.39 53 66.27 46 40.02 50
DF51 Mistakes and delays in producing design documents Designers 66.67 28 69.80 30 46.54 26
DF52 Misunderstanding of owner’s requirements by design engineer Designers 56.86 66 63.92 51 36.35 62
DF53 Poor use of advanced engineering design software Designers 53.33 73 54.90 74 29.28 73
DF54 Unclear and inadequate details in drawings Designers 71.76 12 73.33 14 52.63 13
Fluctuatinglaborsavailabilityseasontoseason/Seasonallaborsavailabil
DF55 Labour 78.82 3 76.86 7 60.59 6
ity
DF56 Absenteeism Labour 60.39 53 58.43 70 35.29 65
DF57 Low motivation and morale of labour Labour 71.76 12 72.94 15 52.35 14
DF58 Low productivity of labour Labour 73.33 8 74.90 10 54.93 8
DF59 Personal conflicts among labour Labour 52.16 79 52.16 82 27.20 82
DF60 Shortage of labour Labour 68.63 21 67.45 42 46.29 28
DF61 Slow mobilization of labour Labour 65.10 34 71.37 22 46.46 27
DF62 Strike Labour 43.92 86 52.94 79 23.25 83
DF63 Unqualified/inadequate experienced labour Labour 72.94 10 74.51 11 54.35 9
DF64 Change in materials type and specifications during construction Material 59.22 60 64.31 49 38.08 56
DF65 Damage of delivered materials Material 55.69 68 60.78 62 33.85 68
DF66 Delay in manufacturing materials Material 61.18 48 70.20 29 42.94 41
DF67 Escalation of materials price Material 80.39 2 81.57 4 65.57 2
DF68 Late delivery of materials Material 75.29 6 77.65 6 58.46 7
DF69 Poor procurement of construction materials Material 67.84 24 71.37 22 48.42 20
DF70 Poor quality of construction materials Material 63.92 37 70.98 26 45.37 33
DF71 Unreliable suppliers Material 57.65 65 63.92 51 36.85 61
DF72 Equipment allocation problem Equipment 61.18 48 66.67 44 40.78 47
DF73 Frequent equipment breakdowns Equipment 56.08 67 60.39 63 33.87 67
DF74 Improper equipment Equipment 50.59 81 54.90 74 27.77 80
DF75 Shortage of equipment Equipment 61.96 46 71.37 22 44.22 38
DF76 Accidents during construction External 53.33 73 53.73 78 28.65 75
DF77 Changes in government regulations and laws External 44.31 85 47.06 85 20.85 86
DF78 Conflict, war, and public enemy External 36.47 88 45.88 87 16.73 88
DF79 Delay in obtaining permits from municipality External 53.73 71 58.43 70 31.39 70
DF80 Delay in providing services from utilities(such as water, electricity) External 69.02 19 72.94 15 50.34 17
DF81 Global financial crisis External 52.55 77 52.94 79 27.82 79
DF82 Loss of time by traffic control and restriction at job site External 47.45 82 45.88 87 21.77 84
DF83 Natural disasters (flood, hurricane, earthquake) External 39.22 87 47.45 84 18.61 87
DF84 Price fluctuations External 69.80 18 71.76 20 50.09 18
DF85 Problem with neighbours External 45.10 84 46.27 86 20.87 85
DF86 Slow site clearance External 51.76 80 52.94 79 27.40 81
Unexpectedsurface&subsurfaceconditions(suchassoil,watertable)Or
DF87 External 61.96 46 63.14 56 39.12 53
Unforeseensitecondition
DF88 Unfavourable weather conditions External 52.94 76 54.12 76 28.65 76
24 Werku Koshe and K. N. Jha: Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries

4. Ranking of Sources of Delay

Table 8. Ranking of Sources (Groups) of Delays.

Frequency of occurrence Degree of severity Importance Index

FI Rank SI Rank IMP.I Rank

Contractor’s related factors 65.97 1 69.73 2 46.01 1

Material related factors 65.15 3 70.10 1 45.67 2
Labours related factors 65.23 2 66.84 3 43.60 3
Designer’s related factors 62.44 4 66.58 4 41.57 4
Consultants/supervisors related factors 62.86 5 66.16 6 41.59 5
Client related factors 63.89 6 65.52 7 41.86 6
External related factors 52.13 8 54.81 8 28.57 7

Table 10. Rotated Component Matrixa.

5. Correlation
Component
The Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient is applied to 1 2 3
measure the degree of agreement or disagreement associated Delay in progress payments for completed works .769
with the importance ranking of each two stakeholders for a
Lackofskilledprofessionalinconstructionprojectmanag
single factor of delay, while ignoring the ranking of the third ementincontractororganization
.741
party. The results present that the highest degree of Infective project planning and scheduling .608 .464
agreement is between clients and consultant, which is 88%.
Contractor’s financial difficulty .478
The lowest degree of agreement is between client and
Insufficient data collection and survey before design .850
contractor, and contractors and consultants, which is 67%.
Fluctuating labours availability .587
The relative agreement between each two parties is shown in
Table-9. Low productivity of labour .817
Unqualified/inadequate experienced labour .841
Table 9. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient between parties. Escalation of materials price .900
Late delivery of materials .719
Parties Correlation Coefficient Significant Level
Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis.
Client and Contractor 0.67 0.95 Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser
Normalization.
Client and Consultant 0.88 0.95 a.Rotationconvergedin5iterations.

Consultant and contractor 0.73 0.95 Unqualified/inadequate experienced labor

7. Construction Projects Delay in

6. Principal Component and Factor
Ethiopia in Percent
Analysis (PCFA)
An additional general question asked to respondents to rate
PCFA is a reduction technique used to classify and reduce projects completed on the original targeted completion time.
the number of variables. The top ten factors were analyzed 51 % of respondents replied not one of the projects were
using the PCFA technique to arrive to the top five factors completed on the targeted completion date, 15.68 % of
contributing to schedule overrun. A test for the suitability of respondents answered only 5 % of projects were completed
data has been conducted before starting the analysis. The test on target time, 9.8 % of respondents answered only 10 % of
is based on Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling. A projects were completed on target time, 7.8% of respondents
KMO value >0.5 indicates that the sample is suitable for the answered only 25 % of projects were completed on target
analysis. The KMO value for the causes of delay sample was time, 7.8% of respondents answered only 50 % of projects
0.65. This value indicates that the sample is suited for were completed on targeted time, 7.8% of respondents
analysis. answered only 75 % of projects were completed on targeted
From table 10, we can see that 3 factors have been time, and not one respondent replied 100 % projects were
extracted: completed without extension time. And in Ethiopia only
Delay in progress payments for completed works 8.25% projects were finished on the original targeted
Escalation of materials price completion date.
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 25

8. Relationship with Other Developing and shortage of materials are the most frequent, critical, and
common delay factors in Ethiopia and Tanzania. Delay in
African Countries progress payments for completed works, financial difficulties
Finally in this research the most critical and major faced by contractors and public agencies, Infective project
construction delay factors in Ethiopia are identified, and are planning, scheduling or resource management, low
compared with the major construction delay factors in other productivity level of labors and unqualified workforces are
developing countries like Egypt [23], Nigeria[18] and, the most frequent, critical, and common delay factors in
Tanzania [16]. Delay in payment to contractors is the most Ethiopia and Egypt. Improper planning, Cash-flow problems
frequent and critical causes of delay in public building during construction, financial issues, late delivery and
projects in Ethiopia and Tanzania [16] Whereas, in Egypt and shortage of materials and Infective project planning,
Nigeria the most critical attributes are delayed in progress scheduling or resource management are common delay
payment for completed work and improper planning factors in Ethiopia and Nigeria. In figure 1, the Major top ten
respectively. [18] financial difficulties faced by contractors Factors Causing Construction Delays in Ethiopia are
and public agencies, Escalations of material prices, Delay in compared with the major construction delay factors in other
progress payments for completed works, and late delivery developing countries (Nigeria, Tanzania and Egypt).

Figure 1. Major factors causing construction delay in Ethiopia relate with Egypt, Nigeria, and Tanzania.

Table 11. Major factors causing construction delay in Ethiopia relate with Egypt, Nigeria, and Tanzania.

Rank Current study(2016) Ethiopia Kikawasi, (2012) Tanzania[16] Marzouket (2014 )Egypt [18] Mohammed (2012), Nigeria [23]
Difficulties in financing project by Finance and payments of completed
1 Design changes Improper planning
contractor work by owner
Variation orders/changes of scope
2 Escalation of materials price Delays in payment to contractors, Lack of effective communication
by owner during construction
Infective project planning,
3 scheduling or resource Information delays Low productivity level of labours Design errors
management
Delay in progress payments for Effects of subsurface conditions Shortage of supply like steel,
4 Funding problems
completed works (e.g. soil, high water table, etc.) concrete
Lack of skilled professional in Ineffective planning and scheduling
5 Poor project management, Slow decision-making
construction PM (project of project
26 Werku Koshe and K. N. Jha: Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries

Rank Current study(2016) Ethiopia Kikawasi, (2012) Tanzania[16] Marzouket (2014 )Egypt [18] Mohammed (2012), Nigeria [23]
management) in the organization
Fluctuatinglaboursavailabilityseas
Difficulties in financing project by
6 ontoseason/Seasonallaboursavaila Compensation issues Financial issues
contractor
bility
Late delivery and shortage of Disagreement on the valuation of Type of project bidding and
7 Shortage of materials
materials work done award(negotiation, lowest bidder)
Conflicts among the involved Shortage of construction materials Cash-flow problems during
8 Low productivity of labour
parties in market construction
Unqualified/inadequate Late in revising and approving
9 Project schedule changes Increase in quantities
experienced labour design documents by owner
Mismanagementbythecontractor(fi
Insufficient data collection and
10 Supply/procurement problems Unqualified work force nancial,suppliersupport,sub-
survey before design
contractor)

impacts as delayed projects, lack of firm price quotes, higher

9. Discussion of the Result project costs, a significant rise in the incidence of jobsite
construction materials theft. Some of the more severe
The five most significant factors that cause delay in impacts can be managed by cooperative efforts to minimize,
Ethiopian public building construction are discussed below: manage and share risks through proactive changes in project
methods and contracts. Cost impacts can be mitigated
9.1. Contractor's’ Financial Difficulties through aggressive value engineering for substitute materials,
This research reveals that in Ethiopia owners don’t release by developing on time order culture and stockpiling of
payments for executed work on time. This and likes of regular materials, early purchases of those materials subject
problems that the owner are creating are leading to financial to escalation risk, and identify critical materials, whose
difficulties to contractors and the pitfalls on the progress of production and procurement takes long time and act early
the projects. Therefore the owners should have to release supply commitments. To effectively utilize those methods,
payments on time based on contract agreement and prepare Clients/Owners, Supervisors and Contractors should seek the
sufficient fund in advance to avoid delay in progress early involvement of specialty contractors and their
payments for executed work and contractor’s financial collaboration with the design team. Escalation of materials
difficulties. So as accelerate the project progress. According price
to [18] financial difficulty is defined as getting into a Inflation usually leads to the escalation of prices of
situation where a respondent's credit is adversely impacted, materials, equipment and other inputs to the projects. Since
such as not paying bills. If the contractors have problem in this factor is out of control by project parties, they can only
paying money for the materials to be used, laborers’ salaries minimize delays in the project so that cost overruns due to
and equipment to be used for construction work etc. we can this factor are minimized (since inflation is a time bound
say that they are really in financial difficulties. A financial factor). Sometimes fake scarcity is developed by the
difficulty of contractors has reportedly been one of the providers of materials to make a hyperinflation in developing
important reasons of delay in construction projects [2], [12], countries. The unpredictable inflationary trend is observed in
[6] & [7] they all found that delay in payment from the client many developing countries. [8], [10], [14] identified
would eventually cause financial difficulties to the escalation of materials price is the most important causes of
contractor. Thus, most of the construction works cannot be delay in construction project.
carried out due to these financial difficulties. Furthermore, 9.3. Ineffective Planning and Scheduling by Contractors
[26] postulated that insufficient capital is one of the major
causes of financial difficulties among contractors. Poor Planning and scheduling is the basic for every construction
financial control by the contractor can lead to insufficient work. Ineffective planning and scheduling has a significant
capital (Liu, 2010). Hence, the contractor will have excessive impact on construction delays. It should be developed from
debt, which causes them to face financial difficulties, as they the start of the project until completion of a project. The
cannot pay back the debt. reasons why contractors are not able to follow the planning
and scheduling effectively may be due to inexperience staff
9.2. Escalation of Materials and shortage of workers at the site, financial problem, and
Escalation of material price is certainly another key factors poor site management. [2], [6] found in their research work
affecting time performance of most construction projects in Ineffective planning and scheduling by contractors is the
Ethiopia. During cost estimation process the estimator should significant causes of delay in construction project.
have to consider appropriate inflation factor. Because during 9.4. Delay in Progress Payments for Completed Works
the construction period the cost of construction Materials,
tools, labors, equipment etc. may vary from time to time. Delayed payments of work done by clients on construction
This escalation has, and will continue to cause, such negative projects in the Ethiopian construction industry are considered
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 27

to be a factor that causes delay. It causes severe cash-flow be a party for checking the harmonization of various
problems to contractors and this can have a devastating effect available drawings before construction phase.
down the contractual payment chain Employ experienced and competent professional
Regular monthly payment to contractors for work done consultant/supervisor who is capable to carry out his duties
removed constraints which otherwise may have impeded and responsibilities related to the work with good payment.
project progress to cause delay and cost overruns. Failure to Avoiding the lowest evaluated bidder approach.
provide adequate funding resources to contractors for the job Releasing payments on prescribed time based on contract
done will make it difficult for the contractors to meet project agreement.
objectives [12]. Actions to be taken by consultant/supervisor
According to [14], [15], [17], and [22] delay in progress Sufficient data collection and survey, and detail site
payments for completed works was found to be one of the investigation and design should be done before tender to
major factors that causes schedule overrun. avoid future variations.
Prepare always clear and adequate detail drawing and
9.5. Lack of Skilled Professional in Construction Project BOQ (Bill of quantity) without any mistakes and
Management in Contractor Organization discrepancies.
Shortage of talent in the construction sector is a long-term During cost estimation process the estimator should have
problem and will continue to push up project time and costs. to consider appropriate risk factor and escalation factor.
The education and training capacity given through various Because during the construction period the cost of
higher institutions, organizations etc. are clearly inadequate construction materials, tools, labors, equipment etc. may vary
to meet the need of the large percentage of skilled workers in from time to time.
the Ethiopian construction sector. The education system is Fixing reasonable time and schedule for project. Define
often not delivering the required number of specialists across scope of work as precise as possible to avoid change order.
project management, engineering, surveying, contract Give orientation to the clients, what impacts are
management and the skilled/semi-skilled labor. encountered on the construction of the project. Example,
The findings of this research work is very similar to the immediate approval of payments, variations, additional
findings of those research which were conducted in other works, and price escalation are improving project success.
developing countries like for instance, [23] have found delay Approve the requested payments, additional works,
in progress payments for completed works, low productivity variation orders etc. on time, as per the rule and regulation of
of labor, infective project planning and scheduling, contract, to successful completion of the construction of the
contractor's’ financial difficulties, and unqualified / proposed projects on time.
inadequate experienced labor were the most significant Actions to be taken by contractor
factors that causes delay in Egyptian construction projects. The contractors should employ the right professional for
[21] Identified low productivity of labor, escalation of the right position related to work, i.e. on project manager
materials price, contractor's’ financial difficulties, and delay (PM) position the contractor should assign a person who has
in progress payments for completed works, and infective experience and specializes on construction technology and
project planning were among the significant causes of delay management, construction engineering and management, and
in Malaysian construction industry. related professionals.
In the same manner [20] have indicated that contractor’s The project manager as well as a top level management
financial difficulty, escalation of materials price, and delay in should apply proper project management techniques, such as:
progress payments for completed works, and late delivery of proper planning, scheduling and monitoring, proper cash
materials were among the major cause of delay in Nigerian flow and resource scheduling together with strict monitoring.
construction projects. Compute with real price not to win and collect advance
This similarity in the causes of delay outcome among payment and disappear. Open to learn from others (avoid
different countries shows that the causes are not specific only rigidity). Develop philosophy on financial management per
to some places rather they are universal. project. And, do not use one project finance to other project.
Arrange some incentives and give training, to motivate
labors and increase productivity.
10. Recommendations Develop on time order culture and stockpiling of regular
During the personal interviews of experts from Ethiopia, a materials. Strong and proper material procurement, schedule
number of recommendations emerged to avoid construction as well as its implementations is a reliable means for
delays in Ethiopian public building projects. The researchers resolving material related delays.
classified them under three categories of recommendation
depending on the stakeholders such as client, contractor, and 11. Conclusion
consultant. The recommendations are given in bullet points
as below: This study focused on delay of construction of public
Actions to be taken by client building projects in Ethiopia. The study sought the views of
The design drawings should be integrated and there must clients, consultants, and contractors on the relative
28 Werku Koshe and K. N. Jha: Investigating Causes of Construction Delay in Ethiopian Construction Industries

importance of the factors that cause delays in building [11] Mezher, T. M. and Tawil, W. (1998) Causes of delays in the
construction projects in Ethiopia. The study showed that all construction industry in Lebanon. Engineering, Construction
and Architectural Management 5(3), 252-260.
the three groups of respondents generally agreed that out of a
total of 88 factors the top ten influencing factors are: [12] Frimpong, Y., Oluwoye, J. and Crawford, L. (2003). Causes of
Contractor’s financial difficulty, Escalation of materials delay and cost overruns in construction of groundwater
price, Infective project planning and scheduling, Delay in projects in developing countries: Ghana as a case study.
International Journal of Project Management 21: pp. 321-26.
progress payments for completed works, Lack of skilled
professional in contractor organization, Fluctuating labors [13] Mansfield, N. R., Ugwu, O. O. and Doran, T. (1994) Causes
availability, Late delivery of materials, Low productivity of of delay and cost overruns in Nigerian construction projects.
labor, Unqualified / inadequate experienced labor, International Journal of Project Management 12(4):pp. 254–
60.
Insufficient data collection and survey before design. The 88
factors were categorized into eight major groups and were [14] Fugar, F. D., & Agyakwah-Baah, A. B. (2010). Delays in
ranked. The results show that clients, consultants, and building construction projects in Ghana. Australasian Journal
contractors all agreed that the contractor group of delay of Construction Economics and Building, 10(1/2), 103-116.
factors was the most influential factor. Material related [15] Hamzah, N., Khoiry, M. A., Arshada I., Tawil, N. M., & Che
factors were considered the second most important factor Ani, A. I. (2011). Cause of Construction Delay - Theoretical
causing delay in construction projects followed by Framework. 2nd International Building Control Conference
Designer’s related factors and Consultants /supervisors 2011, Procedia Engineering, 20, 490 – 495.
related factors. [16] Kikawasi, G. (2012). Causes and effects of delays and
disruptions in construction project in Tanzania. Australasian
Journal on Construction Economics and Building, Conference
Series, 1(2), 52-59.
References
[17] Mahamid, I. (2013). Common risks affecting time overrun in
[1] Iyer, K. C., Jha, K. N., 2005. Factors affecting cost road construction projects in Palestine: Contractor's'
performance: evidence from Indian construction projects. perspective. Australasian Journal of Construction Economics
International Journal of Project Management 23, 283–295. and Building, 13(2): 45-52.
[2] Assaf, S. A. and S. Al-Hejji, 2006. Causes of delay in large [18] Mohammed, K. A. (2012). Causes of Delay in Nigerian
construction projects”, international journal of project Construction Industry. Interdisciplinary Journal of
managements, 24: 349-357. Contemporary Research in Business, 4, 785-794.
[3] Takim, R., & Akintoye, A. (2002). A conceptual model for [19] Fung I. W. H., L. T. (2006). Construction Delays in Hong
successful construction project performance. Paper presented Kong civil engineering projects. Journal of construction
at 2nd International Postgraduate Research Conference in engineering management, 132 (6), 639-49.
Built and Human Environment.
[20] O. E. Akinsiku and A. Akinsulire (2012). Stakeholders’
[4] Ministry of Works and Urban Development (MoWUD), Perception of the Causes and Effects of Construction Delays
(2006), Plan for Accelerated and Sustained Development to on Project Delivery. KICEM Journal of Construction
End Poverty (PASDEP), (2005/06-2009/10); Urban Engineering and Project Management. 2(4) 25-31.
Development & Construction Industry component of
PASDEP. [21] N. Hamzah, M. A. Khoiry, I. Arshad, W. H. W.
Badaruzzaman, and N. M. Tawil (2012). Identification of the
[5] Wubishet, J. M., (2004) Performances for Public Construction Causes of Construction Delay in Malaysia. International
Projects in (Least) Developing Countries, Federal Road and Journal of Civil, Architectural, Structural and Construction
Educational Building Projects in Ethiopia, Doctoral Thesis, Engineering 6 (12), 105-110.
NTNU, Trondheim.
[22] Abedi, M., Fathi, M. S., & Mohammad, M. F. (2011). Major
[6] Abdalla, M. Odeh and Hussien T. Battaineh, (2000), Causes of Causes of Construction Delays under Client Category and
construction delay: Traditional Contracts, International Contractor Category. The First Iranian Students Scientific
Journal of Project Management 20(2002) 67–73. Conference in Malaysia, 9 & 10 Apr 2011, UPM, Malaysia.
[7] Mansfield, N. R. Causes of delay and cost overruns in [23] Mohamed M. Marzouk, Tarek I. El-Rasas (2014). Analyzing
Nigerian construction projects. Int J Project Manage 1994; delay causes in Egyptian construction projects. Journal of
12(4):254–60. Advanced Research, 5, 49–55.
[8] Sambasivan M, W. S. (2007). Causes and effects of delays in [24] Ogunlana, SO, Olomolaiye, PO (1989). A survey of site
Malaysian construction industries. International Journal of management practice on some selected sites in Nigeria.
Project Management, 25 (5), 517-526. Building Environ 24 (2), 191-6.
[9] Al-Momani, A. H. (2000). Construction delay: a quantitative [25] Syed M. Ahmed, S. A., Pragnya Kappagantula, and Dharam
analysis, Journal of Project Management 18, 51-59. Gollapudi (2003). Delays in Construction: A Brief Study of
[10] Chan DWW, K. M. (1996). Reasons for delay in civil the Florida Construction Industry. ASC Proceedings of the
Engineering projects in case of Hong Kong. Hong Kong Instit 39th Annual Conference Clemson University Clemson, South
Eng Trans, 3, 1-8. Carolina.
 Journal of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering 2016; 1(1): 18-29 29

[26] Kang sik wei (2010). Causes, effects and methods of with Other Selected Countries. KSCE Journal of Civil
minimizing Delays in construction projects. Journal Of Engineering, 12(6), 367–377.
Management In Engineering, 312-332.
[28] Pickavance Keith (2005). Delay and disruption in construction
[27] Le-Hoai, L., Lee, Y. D., & Lee, J. D. (2008). Delay and cost contracts. Informa publishing group limited. (3) ISBN-10,
overruns in Vietnam large construction projects: a comparison 1843114267.

View publication stats