Causes and impacts of construction disputes in the Ugandan road construction sector.

Abstract

Civil works, worldwide, have the tendency to create strong differences in opinion between even the best intentioned parties, which can quickly degenerate into acrimonious disputes and become difficult to resolve. Like all other developing countries, Uganda is rapidly increasing its capital spending, the efficiency of which will be determined by the Government’s ability to manage infrastructural spending effectively. Construction disputes are one of the obstacles to successful project execution usually leading to increase in project cost; and in worst cases stallment or suspension of the project may occur. This may be devastating and stressing to parties involved, especially if it is a major infrastructural project like a road project. The ability, therefore, to resolve contract disputes quickly and effectively is the difference between a project that is completed on time and a failed capital investment that is completed only after many years of delay. Based on the research findings, this report presents a comprehensive analysis of the occurrence of construction disputes, specifically in the Ugandan road construction sector. In order to determine the sample population, cluster sampling was used. Cluster sampling was performed on contractors, consultants and clients organisation in the Uganda construction industry. The questionnaire survey indicated the major causes of disputes in the road construction sector and these are; for contractors; inadequate contract management supervision and coordination; for consultants, inadequate open and factual information; and for client’s discrepancies and ambiguities in contract documents are the most significant causes of construction disputes in the road construction sector. The result of this research will help construction practitioners and researchers, in preventing and managing of disputes. The researcher identified negotiation as the most preferred method of dispute resolution. It is recommended that the construction industry in Uganda should put more emphasis on adopting alternative dispute resolution methods. In addition, the researcher recommended that all parties to the construction contracts should ensure that they play their roles effectively in order to prevent professional negligence, which may res ult into costly disputes.