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The Challenges Of Indigenous Building Construction Firms In Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
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CHAPTER ONE
1.1BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
According to business dictionary, an online dictionary, “the construction industry is that sector of the national economic engaged in preparation of land and construction, alternation and repair of building, structures and other real properties.
The industry is engaged in many types of building and civil engineering jobs. These include jobs in carpentry, road construction, bridge development and home design. The industry occupies a very important position in the whole world because it is responsible for creating infrastructures for cities, towns, and countries. Oyefeko (1991) as cited in Building construction industry …(2014). National housing Policy (NHP 2006) as in Building construction industry (2014) also confirmed this assertion when it revealed that the industry has an output of 11% Gross domestic product (GDP) and employs 3% of employment nationwide.
Construction industry achieves its aims by combining land other factors of production including variety of raw materials and semi-processed components. This process of resource combination involves all usual elements and functions associated with production of commodity. Most times, because of some challenges facing this sector of business management, capital funds are required based on long-term source of finance to purchase materials coordinate and organize the factors of production. Detailed design of the product must be carried out and all these need to the financed. These therefore constitute challenges, Many indigenous building construction firms especially those ones who have inadequate financial base grapple with. Further aggravation to the problems of the indigenous firms is seen in the government award of contracts to foreign and big time contractors only and leaving no room for the participating of the indigenous contractors to national development. In support of this assertion, Enwegbara (2012) sees the Nigeria’s construction industry as remaining at a cross road because government policies all these years have favoured awarding construction contracts to foreign contractors instead of their national counterparts. The reason explained above makes it obviously difficult for the indigenous firms to be reasonably established in the industry. The situation thus spells doom for the national economy because if the indigenous building contractors are forced out of business dues to the challenges, their death from the industry becomes imminent.
1.2STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The rate of influx of foreign construction firms in Nigeria and Government’s continued patronage of them, when critically analyzed does not communicate any good news to national economy. It has been argued by the public that the so called foreign constructors have little or no qualification for the jobs they are awarded. the uncertainty of their technical base does not guarantee safety of the facilities produced by them. On the contrary, some of our indigenous contractors are well known persons in the area services they render. However, the tendency of not patronizing indigenous construction firms subsequently keeps them perpetually in the lower rung of financial development. When critically studied they only but paint to the death of these indigenous contractors in the future.
On the other hard, if the foreign contractors eventually go back to their countries the situations leaves the indigenous ones not prepared to bear the burder of national development. The time is therefore ripe to proffer lasting solution to the challenges facing indigenous contractors who are the future developers of the national economy.
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
Page 1 of 3
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