Assessment of the causes of troubled irrigation construction projects (A case of Megech Dam Construction Project)
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Date
2018-06-08
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to assess the causes that make irrigation projects in trouble condition by taking the case of Megech Irrigation Dam Construction Project. Despite that the government is committed to develop large scale irrigation projects in different parts of the country, these projects are blamed for their stalling and slippages. The same is true for the ongoing project of Megech Irrigation Dam which is taking longer time. Therefore, this study is conducted to assess the causes related with management mistakes, planning mistakes and external influences that influence the performance of the project. It is a descriptive and explanatory type which employs both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Data is collected from both primary and secondary resources. Questionnaire and semi structured interview was used to collect data from the sample which are selected purposively because of their engagement in this project. The reliability test is done by Cronbach’s Alpha test and yields 0.77 which is acceptable. Data analysis is by both qualitative and quantitative approaches in which mean, standard deviation are used for discussion. The findings revealed that the mistakes in the planning stages are significantly affecting the performance of the project. Failure to have a risk management plan, poor management of scope changes, lack of proper financing and forex, political unrest, poor estimation and complexity nature of irrigation projects make the management tough and troubled. Besides, the practice of having prevention strategies is insignificant rather it is intervention approach which is commonly used to recover projects. To alleviate these problems, it is essential to build the capacity of managing projects, involve stakeholders actively, and has a policy to manage risks, deploy effective cost controlling strategies and have public private partnership arrangements.
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project slippage, management mistakes, planning mistakes