We need an action agenda to transform the construction industry - Surveyor

Mr K. H. Osei-Asante, Chartered Quantity Surveyor, has called on government to put in place an action agenda for the transformation of the construction industry.

He said improving access to finance and credit for construction projects, bridging the housing deficit, promoting and supporting research, performance monitoring and measurement, and improving skills development amongst others, should suggest the needed actions required to transform the construction industry.

Mr Osei-Asante said this in a speech delivered at the 10th Annual General Conference/Expo of the Association of Building and Civil Engineering Contractors of Ghana (ABCECG) held at Winneba.

The conference was held under the theme: “Positioning of the construction industry for sustainable and affordable infrastructure Development-the role of the Ghanaian Contractor”.

He said globally, infrastructure is the lifeblood of prosperity and economic confidence and dealing with infrastructure that will be sustainable and affordable, demands commitment, conviction and conscience. Successful delivery of well-planned infrastructure investments offers developing economies an opportunity to compete in the global marketplace, he said.

Mr Osei-Asante said the nation’s construction industry has some strengths that can be used as the foundations for further improvement in the performance of the industry.

He said at its best, the Ghanaian construction industry exhibits admirable excellence and has delivered quite a few landmark infrastructure projects saying as far back as the 1950s, Ghanaian construction firms were involved in the delivery of some of the excellent post-independence infrastructure.

The population and economic growth have thrown a harsh spotlight on infrastructure bottlenecks and accentuated the demand for increased infrastructure service, he said.

Mr Osei-Asante said the Global Competitiveness Report 2015/2016 ranks Ghana’s infrastructure quality at 120th out of 140 countries, and added that this establishes the extent Ghana has to go as a country in order to reach standards that are similar to leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

“The construction industry development agenda in the country cannot be accomplished over the short term, but it will be delivered by a radical and rationalized restructuring of the industry and which ought to be continuously managed, administered and monitored”.