Causes of Delays in Construction Projects in Many Developing Countries

الملخص

Delays of construction projects in developing countries are one of the most common problems facing both local and international construction sector alike. Problems that lead to delays of works completion in international construction projects affect negatively on various vital sectors including the economy of those countries. The main causes of construction delays are comparable across developing countries. Consequently, this study is based on a literature survey, comparison conducted among six developing countries around the world and case study analysis in order to demonstrate causes and effects of delays in construction projects across many developing countries. Although, there are many causes may lead to delays, the results of this study showed that there are ten main causes including: change in design and material, lack of site management, lack of experienced subcontractors, financial problems contractor-related, problems of estimation, delay of payments by client, weakness of project planning process by contractor, delay of design documents, lack of contract management by consultant and poor coordination among the parties in site. Furthermore, the findings also confirm that there are six major negative effects of delay including time overrun, cost overrun, disputes, arbitration, litigation and total abandonment. This study concludes with some recommendations for both contractor and client in light of the problems and causes that have been addressed which lead to the delays in construction projects.