New service standards for the construction industry in South Africa has been set in a move to improve performance for housing contractors.
The National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) would be brought on board to assist with inspections on housing projects and the approval processes.
This will be part of the department’s strategy of improving contractor’s performance in order for them to be able to fully deliver mega-projects.
According to Gauteng Human Settlements MEC, Jacob Mamabolo, the department had not been able to deliver enough houses for the last five years yet the money spent on construction of houses had increased over the years. In turn housing opportunities delivered had declined.
Mamabolo also noted that change has to be noticed by close of the financial year with an increase in number. The gap between expenditure and output of projects had to be closed.
Performance of contractors would now be analyzed through the use of a revised Service Level Agreement (SLA) which they would all need to sign.
This will enable the contractors commit to deliver projects on target and as agreed by the parties that are in charge of the project. However, the SLA’s will not interfere with the contracts already given.
Mamabolo further noted that the department had already experienced an improvement of 41 percent during the first quarter of the year as compared to the previous year while at the same time getting an unqualified audit outcome.
In a meeting held recently at the Emperor’s Palace, in Ekurhuleni, contractors complained about lack of technical support, legal and contractual issues and delays in quality assurance and approvals. Mamabolo committed to resolving the issues and creating a platform where the department will have meetings with contractors more often.
Government officials would also receive revised performance standards and the appropriate actions would be taken on anybody who under-performs. Corruption would also be dealt with.
With more houses required, the construction industry in South Africa is now booming with some leveraging on lenient rules not to deliver.
