National construction authority to develop new industry policy

NAIROBI, KENYA: The National Construction Authority (NCA) has announced commissioning of a research seeking to establish the capacity of Kenyan contractors, standardize construction materials and technology used in the industry.

The research which will be a key output during this year's Annual Construction Research Conference and Exhibition (ACoRCE) will bring together the region's regulators who have adopted construction policies, manufacturers with new technologies adaptable for local industries and development partners.

The research seeks to study and identify challenges facing the country's construction industry such as the standardisation of emerging construction materials, technologies and skills based on the National Construction Research Agenda (NaCRA) and puts in place processes to improve the capacity of skilled construction workers and an accreditation mechanism.

Housing and Urban Development Principal Secretary Aidah Munano said due to the booming construction businesses in the country and especially in Nairobi, demands have increased on materials, technology and skills resulting in gaps in their use which has led to a number of failures.

"The continued growth of construction has increased demand on materials, technology and skills resulting in gaps in their use and therefore a number of failure and most of these failures are related to the quality or documentation of materials, inadequate capacity of contractors and their workers, unprofessional practices and enforcement challenges," she said.

The three-year plan is meant to identify solutions facing the country's construction industry. By improving the quality of material available in the market, improving the capacity of contractors and skilled workers, which remain the greatest hindrance to realising the 30 per cent local content in Mega construction projects.

The CEO, National Construction Authority, Daniel Manduku, said, In working towards the policy, the regulator is in consultation to repeal the physical planning act as an initial step in harmonizing regulations between the county and national governments while finalizing revisions on the building code.

"We're looking at the collaboration between the NCA, NLC, NEMA and County governments' on matters regulation. A good instance would be land acquisition procedures which are a main cause of delay in projects; where each party abides by its' set regulations causing delays thereby impacting on financing a single project," Said the architecture.

According to NCA, upon completion and adoption, the policy will better streamline the construction sector by creating a systematic framework for all players in the industry.