AN APPRAISAL OF THE PERFORMANCE OF CARING HEART MEGA PRIMARY SCHOOL PROJECTS IN ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

In most cases, both public and private building construction projects are hardly completed on time, within budgeted cost and quality specifications. New buildings and newly rehabilitated or maintained infrastructure become dilapidated within a few months of commissioning despite the capital commitments on them. This study appraised the performance of Caring Heart Mega Primary School projects, in terms of budget, time and quality, executed by the Ondo state government, if they were achieved. It also analyzed factors responsible for the budget overrun/under-run recorded on the project; and the causes of delay (if any) on the project delivery. Frequency, Percentage, Mean, Standard Deviation, Relative Importance Index (RII) and Severity Index (SI) were used for the descriptive data, while Chi-Square test was used for the inferential analyses to achieve the stated research objectives and test the hypotheses. The findings shows that the majority of the respondents held the view that Ondo State Caring Heart Mega Primary School Project achieved the stakeholder’s goals and objectives in terms of quality but did not finish on time and were completed at a cost higher than the originally envisaged contract cost. Respondents indicated that wrong method of estimation/inaccurate estimation of original cost (Mean = 4.58); additional work (Mean = 4.05); unforeseen site condition (Mean = 4.02); cost of materials (Mean = 3.91); poor contract management (Mean = 3.89); improper planning (Mean = 3.73); poor site management and supervision (Mean = 3.69); shortage of technical, managerial and supervisory personnel (Mean = 3.60); and unrealistic contract durations imposed by client (Mean = 3.61) contributed largely to the project delay and budget overrun. Furthermore, this study found that effect of weather (p = 0.000; < 0.05), fraudulent practices (p= 0.000; < 0.05), frequent design changes (p = 0.000; < 0.05), high cost of labour (p = 0.000; < 0.05), inadequate production of raw materials locally (p = 0.000; < 0.05), lack of communication (p = 0.000; < 0.05) among others contributed in one way or the other to budget overrun of the Caring Heart Mega Primary School Project except government policies (p = 0.226; > 0.05). Consequently, for public entities to achieve successful or effective implementation of projects, it is imperative for them to manage the processes of procurement planning, contract monitoring, choice of procurement procedure and communication more effectively. The study then recommends that risk management practices should be excellently used; proper project planning and proper payment as at when due to contractors. In addition, client should be well represented on site and experts should always be engaged on construction works.