Killing What We Intend to Grow: The Challenges of the Local Construction Industry with the Public Procurement Systems in Ghana

Abstract

Countries have used their public procurement systems, as a policy tool to grow their indigene construction industry by reviewing sections that are not favourable to the local construction firms. Ghanaian public procurement systems have gone through various reforms to date. This study, therefore, investigated the challenges faced by the local construction industry concerning the public procurement systems in Ghana. The qualitative research approach was used for this study. A structured survey questionnaire made up of closed and open-ended were distributed to randomly selected 65 construction firms registered and operating from Accra; of which 36 of them responded. Data received were analyzed by using content analysis method whereby similar responses were grouped together and sorted in terms of their frequencies and magnitude. The findings indicate that the local construction firms have major issues with the public procurement systems, some of which include; funding, bribery and corruption, foreign competition, lack of capacity to tender for some project, payment delays, cumbersome tender process, sole sourcing, and political influence. The implication is that the procurement systems in Ghana are still having major challenges in addressing issues faced by the local construction thereby limiting their growth. The limitation of this study is that primary data were solicited from only construction firms operating from Accra. It is therefore recommended that government of Ghana should institute measures such as local content policy, prompt payment, skill development and encourage joint venture to address these concerns in order to achieve the domestication and Ghana without aid policy in the near future.